


Blood Moon

by EmeraldWaves



Series: Blood Moon [1]
Category: K (Anime)
Genre: Dragon AU, Dragon Shifter AU, Fantasy AU, How do you write battle scenes im so so sorry, I feel like it's never gonna be finished and I will keep editing, If you look really hard there's side Sarumi and side Izuseri, M/M, and wounds, some talk of blood, there is one sex scene, this was quite the undertaking, vampire dragons i guess?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-14
Updated: 2016-02-14
Packaged: 2018-05-19 01:35:49
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 44,157
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5951209
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EmeraldWaves/pseuds/EmeraldWaves
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Munakata Reisi is one of the most respected mages in all of Shizume, so it's no surprise when he is hired to protect the young Princess Anna from the Red Dragon who only seems to attack during the full moon. However, when Munakata is taken hostage by the creature, he learns that perhaps the creature isn't what he seems at all.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Blood Moon

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Shinyphoenix](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shinyphoenix/gifts).



> Hello!! Ahhhh I can't believe this is finished. This is for [Shinyphoenix](http://archiveofourown.org/users/Shinyphoenix) and their prompt was: MikoRei. Dragon/human Suoh kidnaps "Princess" Munakata who is standing in to protect the real princess and slay the dragon/get back the royal treasure. Like maybe Suoh can turn into a dragon and Munakata is a bodyguard/ head wizard or something. I might change this into chapters so it's not so overwhelmingly long, but for now I have to leave it.
> 
> Thank you for this absolutely incredible prompt and I would like to apologize for this giant ass mess.

Standing in front of the mirror, Munakata Reisi raised an eyebrow at his appearance. He fingered the long strand of blue hair which trailed down to rest on his upper chest. He couldn’t help but think the disguise was certainly _authentic_ looking. Twirling around, the dress swirled about his legs, and he smiled at his second-in-command, Awashima Seri. 

“Sir…” she muttered.

“Tsk,” Fushimi scoffed, turning away from him, not wanting to look his often insufferable boss in the eye. 

“I do say…” he smirked, standing as properly as he could, “it seems the hair extending spell worked wonderfully!” 

Awashima began to protest, “Sir…if I could just-” Munakata held his hand up to stop her. 

“I already made my decision, Awashima,” he said. “Besides, the only other viable option was Fushimi and he flatly refused when I offered him the prestigious role of the princess,” Munakata shrugged, pressing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. He leaned towards Fushimi, a large grin painted across his lips. “Though the offer is still on the table; it’s not too late to switch,” he chirped. Pressing his hand to the side of Munakata’s face, Fushimi pushed him away. 

“I’m fine,” he growled and stepped back.

Munakata placed a hand on his chest dramatically, stepping towards the mirror. “Hmph! Just as I thought. Plus, if anyone is to take on the fearful and terrifying Red Dragon, it probably should be me. For all we know, Fushimi would crack under the terrible pressure-”

“I wouldn't _crack_ under pressure.” Fushimi sighed heavily, gritting his teeth. “But as the Captain you made it very clear you’re the strongest of us and would prefer that _we_ back _you_ up if your _genius_ plan was to fail.” 

“Mmm,” he hummed softly. “This is very true. As a High Magus, both my physical ability and magical ability far exceeds yours,” he said, twirling a piece of his now long blue hair around his finger. 

“Tsk. We’re aware.” Fushimi rolled his eyes, tempted to pull his own sword on the man right on the spot. 

“Captain, with all due respect,” Awashima spoke up, “do you really think it wise to be putting yourself in such blatant danger? Our guild needs you. You said it yourself, your physical and magical ability is far greater than most of our members. If something were to happen to you, we do not have a High Magus to take your place!” she urged, rubbing her forehead. Even as her nerves caused her heart to palpitate in her chest, she recognized the feeling; it wasn’t the first time Captain Munakata had done something utterly ridiculous.

Munakata knew Awashima had been against the idea the moment the King had approached their guild with the offer, mostly because he had agreed without blinking an eye. He had always been quite the advocate for helping the citizens of Shizume. That was the purpose of magical guilds after all! He hadn’t worked for years to become the mage he was to simply sit around managing the up and coming members of the guild. He was just as eager to accept quests, despite Awashima’s frequent protestations.

He especially grew excited when it came to higher level quests such as this one. The way Munakata saw it, he had no choice but to accept it himself.

“Sir, you do realize…the dragon is going to know you’re not Princess Anna the moment he sees you, correct?” Awashima said hesitantly, finally addressing the elephant which stood awkwardly in the large bedroom. 

Folding his arms, Munakata began to pace about the room slowly, “Awashima, as I have said many times, I appreciate your concern. However, there is not much we know about dragons. Their intelligence level is questionable…” 

“ _Your_ intelligence level is questionable,” Fushimi muttered under his breath, earning him a telling glare from Awashima.

“And we’re still not sure _why_ the Red Dragon has chosen to come to this particular castle for the past few Blood Moons,” Munakata continued, though it was unclear whether he had heard Fushimi and chose to ignore him, or if he was completely oblivious to the snarky side comment altogether. “The appearance of dragons has always been rare occurrence anyway, and why it would focus its efforts on one sole location isn’t clear yet. It is possible it could be after the Princess…or perhaps this dragon is just after _a_ princess. Hence,” he waved his hand up and down his person, “the costume.” 

There was a long period of silence while Awashima and Fushimi stared at their eccentric Captain. Often times Fushimi cursed himself for ever following the man, and while Awashima was normally the opposite, it was times like these she questioned her career choice. She sighed tiredly, pressing her palm against her forehead. 

“Shall I go fetch the King? Are you ready, sir?” 

“You both tell me,” he asked, cocking an eyebrow up. “Do I look ready?” 

“I’ll go,” Fushimi said with a deadpan stare, turning around to make his way out of the bedroom.

“Captain,” Awashima began after Fushimi had left. “Please do not hesitate to call Fushimi and me for backup if you feel you are in need of aid,” she implored. “You just stated we do not know much about dragons and their origins, nor do we understand their powers. You are justifiably confident in your ability but please do not be overconfident; there is a reason Fushimi and I are here.”

Munakata Reisi was known for his extraordinary ability as a High Magus—a knight and mage hybrid—who focused primarily on ice based magic. Awashima completely understood why the King would want someone as strong as he to fight against the Red Dragon. Though as far as she could tell, this was to be Munakata’s greatest challenge yet. His skills were highly regarded, but dragons were fearsome creatures considered by many to be a legend. Awashima feared that not even Munakata would be able to handle the creature of lore.

Stepping forward, the mage placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. “Do not worry Awashima,” he said softly. “I would never disrespect you or Fushimi in such a way. I trust you both and I am fully aware this has the potential to be an overwhelming situation. If I feel incapable on my own, I _will_ send the signal.” Though his voice carried a great deal of sincerity, he knew he wasn’t being completely truthful. He much preferred to keep his subordinates out of harm’s way. Of course Awashima and Fushimi were strong and capable, but he wouldn’t rely on them unless he absolutely had to. 

“Sir, I would like to believe you, but it’s hard to take you seriously when you…are dressed like that,” she sighed. Letting out a loud chuckle, Munakata stepped away from her and played with his bangs in the mirror.

“Mmm, so I suppose that means you’re going to want me to put my hair back to normal after this?” he sighed, glancing behind him as he grinned, attempting to lighten the serious mood which had infected the room.

She snorted, covering her mouth as her body shook gently with her laughter, “Y-You are free to do as you please, C-Captain…” she giggled softly as Munakata chuckled with her. 

“Good evening. I’m glad to see everyone is in good spirits.” A small chortle came from the King as he walked in beside Fushimi and the young princess, Anna. The King’s smile was tired, clearly stressed about the evening which lay ahead of them.

“Ah, King Iwafune,” Munakata said, their laughter dying as they realized their employer had joined them in the girl’s bedroom. Awashima and Munakata bowed their heads, but the King was quick to wave them back up.

“I do appreciate you coming this evening,” he said. “That outfit…is interesting,” he muttered, glancing up and down at Munakata. “I did say you could use whatever methods you pleased, so whatever suits you best, Munakata,” he smirked, his eyebrow still cocked at how strange the powerful mage looked dressed in such a foolish outfit.

“One would never know he was a High Magus,” Fushimi scoffed, though once again, he spoke mostly under his breath.

“The Captain has a theory,” Awashima said hurriedly, hoping to talk over Fushimi. “This dragon could potentially be after any princess, not just your daughter.” 

“I think…I think he looks beautiful,” Anna said quietly, her hand wrapped tightly around the King’s finger.

“Don’t encourage him,” Fushimi muttered, rolling his eyes as Munakata beamed at the young girl’s words. A small smile appeared across her lips, happy to see adults acting so ridiculous, especially on a stressful night like this.

Tonight wasn’t the first time that King Iwafune and Princess Anna met with the Red Dragon. There was apprehension in their eyes; Anna’s red hues reflected her trepidation while Iwafune’s grays were filled with desperation. He could only pray Munakata would be capable of doing the job he had hired him for.

Munakata had already made arrangements for the two royal family members to be tucked into the depths of the castle. If there was one thing Munakata was known for besides his incredible skill with ice magic, it was his thoroughness. When hired, he always gave his absolute best to the job and he rarely failed to complete whatever task had been given to him. The King had been well-aware of Munakata’s reputation and even as he questioned his methods, he had faith the High Magus would do his job.

“I wanted to check in and see if you were all set for your operation. If you do not need anything else from me, Anna and I will be heading to the basement,” he nodded. “I trust you will follow through with your promises on this job. If you capture the dragon, I will give you the bonus we spoke of. However, my daughter’s safety is my top priority. If you must slay the dragon, I will still reward you with the money.”

“Of course. You have nothing to worry about, King Iwafune,” Munakata assured, bowing his head slightly. “Though it would be ideal to capture the dragon. It has been centuries since they’ve been seen and the Magus Scientists would be thrilled to have the chance to discover as much information about them as possible.”

“Capture would be the most ideal.” The King’s hand stroked down the back of Anna’s head. His hand trailed through her silver locks as he looked at her with a fatherly affection. “But Anna is my only daughter and if it is her the dragon is after, I would rather take his head than see him live to hurt her later.”

“Could it be the Red Dragon is hoping to collect some of your wealth, King Iwafune?” Awashima asked. “Old legends speak of dragons as collectors, perhaps that is the creature’s true goal.” 

Munakata would have agreed with Awashima, except that the circumstances under which King Iwafune and Princess Anna had been attacked by the Red Dragon had been odd. The dragon had appeared twice, both during the Blood Moon, otherwise known as the Red Moon. It only happened every few months on the lunar calendar; at most three times a year. This particular year, they were to have three and this evening was the third. Munakata had posited that the Red Dragon would return this evening in an attempt to take the princess from her home yet again. He could only assume the Red Moon boosted the dragon’s power, making it an ideal time to fight against the knights of the castle.

Both times prior, the King’s personal knight Mishakuji Yukari had protected both the King and Anna from the attack; he had spent years as the King’s personal bodyguard, though he was often seen guarding the Princess as well. He moved with grace and was known mostly for his beautiful fighting style. Even with his rather delicate looking swordplay, he was incredibly capable as a swordsman and had performed his duties well.

During the first attack, Mishakuji had been the one to defend both of them from the Red Dragon. The King had used his own power, though over the years his magic had grown very weak and he was unable to fight to his old potential. The King admitted the two had barely managed to hold the creature off during that first evening.

The second attack had come on a night when the King had traveled to a neighboring continent, leaving the battle to Mishakuji alone. Neither of them had been expecting the dragon to return and Mishakuji had injured the dragon but not without a price; he had been gravely injured in the second attack and was currently unable to fulfill his duties. After the second attack, the King believed they were going to be seeing the dragon again, so he hadn’t hesitated in hiring someone to eradicate the problem.

“It’s possible he could be after wealth, though it seems he means to steal the Princess since both times she was directly involved,” Munakata argued. “When I spoke to your knight, he mentioned the dragon seemed to have his focus on the Princess; his gaze always returning to her.” He decided to skip the part where Mishakuji had been offended the dragon hadn’t seemed interested in him, despite the fact that he was by far the most attractive knight.

After he hired Munakata and his underlings through the magical guild, Scepter, the King had explained to the best of his ability the nature of both attacks. From this Munakata had come to two conclusions: first, the Red Dragon was most powerful on the night of the Blood Moon which is why it had only shown itself two times and second, its target appeared to be the Princess. Whether he was after any princess or specifically Anna remained to be seen.

Dragons were mysterious creatures and Munakata wasn’t about to rule anything out until he came face to face with the creature himself. If all his theories were correct, in a few hours the dragon would appear at the castle when the moon was fullest and highest in the sky. 

Glancing out the window, Munakata nodded to the King. He wanted them tucked as deep down into the castle as possible while the moon was out. Munakata knelt down, giving Anna a gentle smile. “I promise you, tonight will be the last night you have to worry about this dragon coming anywhere near you.” 

She nodded her head once, their eyes locking as they shared a brief understanding. She trusted him, her stare unwavering as red eyes met violet. “You know, you might be prettier than Yukari,” she whispered.

“Oya?” he said, tilting his head slightly. Placing a finger on his lips, he smiled, “You probably shouldn’t tell him that. He’d be very upset to hear he wasn’t your prettiest knight.” A smile trailed across her lips as Munakata stood back up. “Awashima, please take the King and the Princess to the room we planned. You and Fushimi will wait as instructed until I give the signal,” he nodded, bowing the King and Princess one final time. 

Alone, Munakata glanced around the comfortable bedroom. It was a large room and it was clear the King spoiled his daughter. Though Munakata supposed he couldn’t blame him; with his kind of wealth, it seemed foolish to not treat the adorable little girl with such care. The bed had a large red canopy, red lace curtains, and light lace sheets which draped over the side. There was a tall, ornate, dollhouse in the corner of the room and a few dolls strewn about the floor. To an outsider, the room looked serene and peaceful, and Munakata wanted to do everything in his power to keep it that way.

He pushed the large glass doors open to the balcony, awaiting the battle which was soon to come. The wind fluttered through his now long hair, flicking it about his face. He sighed, his fingers brushing over the handle of his saber by his side. He wished he had more information about the Red Dragon. However, even with the amount of time he had spent researching dragons, there simply was not enough information about them for him to learn much of anything. He could only hope that with his magical skill and sword technique he would do a better job than Anna’s personal bodyguard. At the very least, the King and the Princess would be far enough away that they would not be harmed. 

He knelt down on the balcony, sitting peacefully while he awaited what he could only assume was the inevitable attack. Taking deep breaths in, he gauged his magical energy. Magic wasn’t everlasting and even a powerful Magus such as himself could run out of magical energy. Munakata had worked to focus and build up his energy for this particular battle, knowing it would be one of the more difficult challenges he had faced in quite a long while.

Munakata wasn’t sure how long he sat on the balcony, his long hair flying about in the wind. But his concentration was broken when he heard the barely audible roar humming in the undertones of the wind. He hadn’t been wrong; the dragon would soon be here.

As his eyes snapped open, he saw the creature’s moving form from far away. He didn’t look as large as Munakata had imagined in his mind—even from this distance Munakata could tell the creature wasn’t the monstrosity many humans had assumed dragons to be. Standing up, he drew his saber, seeing the creature approaching quickly. He heard another roar as his heart began to race. Closing his eyes and taking a deep breath, he gathered the magic he could feel swirling in his core. The cool blue ice magic pooled in his hand as he concentrated it to his fingertips. Holding the sword in front of him, Munakata traced his fingers over the smooth steel, coating the saber in his ice magic.

Smirking, he stood poised, waiting as the creature drew near. He was surprised to see that the dragon was coming directly towards him. The Red Dragon was smarter than he thought, recognizing Munakata was the threat for the evening. Or perhaps the dragon was stupid to face the mage head on like this.

A deafening roar was heard as the Red Dragon landed on the edge of the balcony. The noise rang in Munakata’s ear, his body trembling as his gaze stayed locked on the creature in front of him. Up close, the Red Dragon was the size of a what seemed to be a Giant Eagle, another creature which had long been thought to be extinct. He had large horns which twisted towards the sky and his tail whipped back and forth as he steadied himself on the edge of the balcony. Down his spine were long spikes which jut out into the air, pointed at the ends. His wings spanned the full length of the balcony and they flapped against the wind as he roared at Munakata, the force sending the mage slipping backwards. 

“Mmm, I’m sorry to disappoint you, Dragon. Tonight will be the last night you terrorize these people,” he muttered to himself. Watching the dragon’s face, he noticed flames boiling inside of its snout, the smoking rising from its nostrils. As it shot the fire in his direction, Munakata flicked his wrist, putting up an ice block, sending the fire up toward the sky. Though it stopped the fire momentarily, Munakata dashed out of the way, the heat melting the barrier he had set up. He wanted to finish this quickly, knowing the King wanted minimal damage.

Sprinting towards the creature, the mage swung his sword, sending shots of ice at the creature. But the dragon was faster than Munakata anticipated—it not only dodged his magical attacks, but also began to charge directly at him.

Cursing the disguise he had worn, he wondered if it had even mattered. Would the dragon have attacked anyone who was waiting for him by the Princess’ room, or did he think he was another princess? Munakata didn’t really have time to decipher what was the truth as he dodged another flame attack. Thankfully, it grazed the side of the castle, not entering the building itself. Munakata sighed, catching his breath as the dragon huffed out a large cloud of angry smoke.

Rolling forward, he moved his hand in a circular motion sending a large force of magic towards the creature. A deafening roar was heard as the ice hit the creature’s shoulder. Its pupils dilated, glaring at the mage who had dug the ice into his shoulder. Smoke rose from his body as the paralyzing ice dissipated into the air.

Enraged, the dragon was almost too fast for Munakata, slashing at the mage. The claws dug into his skin, pulling open a deep gash in his left shoulder. Wincing in pain, Munakata fell backwards, landing on the stone as the dragon glared down at him. Slowly he raised his uninjured arm up, shooting a large blast of ice towards the sky; the magic burst in the air and snow began to fall down around both of them. The creature glanced upwards, giving Munakata enough time to roll out from underneath him. He prayed Awashima and Fushimi had seen the signal. The dragon was strong, but he was much faster than Munakata had expected, that was the real problem. If the dragon hadn’t dug into his shoulder so deeply, he thought he maybe could have continued the battle on his own, but he didn’t want to risk it. If he failed, he didn’t want the dragon to get past him and hurt the King or his daughter…then he really would have failed.  

Clutching his shoulder, he panted, staring down the dragon. Smoke trickled out of the corner of his mouth, and his belly was heaving, blood dripping from the deep wound Munakata had made on the dragon’s shoulder.

“Seems we’ve both dealt quite the blows,” Munakata chuckled, holding his saber up with his healthy arm.   “Captain!” Awashima called out from behind him, the sound of her sword being drawn echoed in the air. A giant blast of ice magic exploded out from behind him and Munakata could only assume Fushimi stood with her. The dragon barely moved out of the way, his tail getting hit by the blast. It roared, shooting flames up towards the sky.

“Are you alright, Captain?!” Awashima yelled stepping towards him. As she moved, the dragon charged forward, heading directly towards both of them.

“Awashima! Look out!” Munakata yelled, shoving the woman out of the way as the dragon rammed into his side, sending the mage falling backwards as his world slowly faded to black from the impact. 

~~~

Awashima slowly blinked as she processed what had happened in the seconds after Munakata had pushed her out of the way. The dragon grabbed Munakata in his talons and flew towards the sky…Munakata had been taken. Had the dragon been coming for her? Or perhaps he _was_ out to get Munakata, but why had he taken him away from the castle?

“F-Fushimi! The Red Dragon took the Captain,” Awashima stammered finally, scrambling to grab her sword as she watched the dragon moving away from the castle. “We’ve got to move. Now!” she demanded, running towards the room to head out the front of castle.

“Wait,” Fushimi called out, chasing after her. He knew however, there was no way they could stop what had happened. The dragon had flown off; there was no way they could catch the creature to get their Captain back now. “Awashima, stop!” he growled, dashing forward to grab her wrist and stop her from moving. 

“…Fushimi! We don’t have time to think, we have to _act_!” she exclaimed. Sighing, Fushimi squeezed her wrist tight.

“There’s no way we can catch that creature now, we have to be realistic.” Her eyes widened as she stopped fighting against the other’s grip.

“W-What are you saying? We should just let the dragon take our guild’s only High Magus!?” she snapped. 

“Tsk. Of course not. I’m saying we need to regroup…” he muttered. “We can wait until tomorrow to send out a search party. If we run around recklessly right now, nothing will get accomplished and you know it,” he said quietly. 

Biting her lip, she frowned. She hated when Fushimi spoke the truth.

“You’re right,” she sighed. Her hands shook by her side. This was exactly what she had feared would happen. She could only pray the Captain wasn’t dead by the time they got to him. _If_ they ever got to him… 

“Come on,” he said, heading towards the basement. “We have to report this to the King.” 

“Right,” she muttered, following Fushimi quietly. He could tell Awashima was bothered by the situation and though he wasn’t being so vocal about it, Fushimi was…concerned. He knew the High Magus could take care of himself, but against a powerful dragon, well, even Fushimi had his doubts. 

“Look, we’ll…we’ll figure out where the dragon could’ve gone. We’ll search immediately,” he said awkwardly. It was out of character for him to reassure her in such a way, so Awashima did appreciate the effort the mage was making. Still, humans hadn’t known dragons even existed until this past year. How would they ever find the Captain with such little information?

Fushimi pulled the door open to the basement, making his way down the large steps to where the King and his daughter were seated, hiding away from any possible danger.

Standing up, the King approached Fushimi. “What happened?” he asked, noting the nervous looks on both of their faces. 

“The Red Dragon took the Captain,” Fushimi stated bluntly. 

“The High Magus?” the King whispered incredulously. “The creature is that strong?” he asked. 

“Apparently,” Fushimi scoffed. 

“So was he simply after any princess like Munakata assumed?” the King asked, glancing back towards his daughter.

“We have very little information. But we hope this means, at the very least, the dragon will be leaving you and your daughter alone. Our job is done,” Fushimi stated. 

Sighing, the King rubbed his forehead. Smacking his lips together, he spoke softly, “I do suppose it is better the dragon took him and not my daughter,” he shrugged. 

“It would have been better if no one had been taken, don’t you think?” Awashima muttered. 

“I’ll have your payment ready as soon as possible,” he said, bowing his head to both of them. “I am sorry for…your loss, but I thank you for working so hard to protect both me and my daughter.” 

“We’d like the payment immediately,” Fushimi demanded. “We’ll be leaving in the morning to trail the dragon.”

“You’re going after that creature?” the King asked raising an eyebrow at the two mages. Awashima nodded with determination. 

“Of course we are, he took our Captain and we’re not going to let him get away with that,” she smiled.

~~~

Munakata’s body ached more than it had in awhile, the throbbing rolling in waves down his left arm. He hadn’t felt this sore since his training days. Groaning, his eyes fluttered opened as he tried to sort through the memories in his hazy mind. He could recall the fight with the Red Dragon and the pain in his side was definitely an indication the battle was real and had actually occurred. The last thing he could remember was pushing Awashima out of the way as the dragon had charged at them.

Pushing himself up with his good hand, he glanced around the strange cavern. It was dark and gray, only a bit of light shining from the small entrance behind him. Droplets of water dripped around him, making a light echo as they plopped against the hard rock ground. This was certainly not the castle and Munakata had no idea how he’d come to be in such a place. Had Awashima and Fushimi taken him away from the battle to heal? 

“Awa-…ngh…” he began to call out, but quickly clutched his side, pain shooting through his body. He took a deep breath, trying to steady himself. If he could just get this damn outfit off, he could check the damage and heal himself. 

“You’re a very pretty man.” A gruff voice spoke from behind him and Munakata whipped his head around, hoping to find the origin of the voice. He immediately regretted that as his side throbbed in pain. Buckling over, he leaned down, his body shaking as he tried to recover.

“Who…who…” he panted, slowly pushing himself up again. This time however, he turned towards the voice carefully. A man sat across from him, a small fire burning in front of him. He was gruff looking with bright red hair and unusual horns which sprung from the top of his head curling towards the sky. His muscles were toned and they moved ever so slightly with each breath he took. Red markings trailed all down his arms and cheeks, matching the color of his bright hair. He noted the man’s shoulder was bruised and punctured, cover with a poorly tied cloth, which didn’t seem to be doing much in ways of stopping the pain or bleeding. In his mouth, he held a long cigarette, smoke curling from the end of the butt. His amber eyes were sharp, as they bore into the mage. Munakata had never seen anything like this strange man-creature. 

After staring for what seemed to be forever, Munakata finally spoke, “What are you?” he asked the man softly. 

“Dragon shifter,” he replied bluntly. 

“Dragon…shifter?” Munakata asked. He’d never heard of such a creature. A shifter? Did that mean the man could change his form at will? “That’s impossible, there’s no such thing.” 

Raising an eyebrow, the man didn’t move. “Alright, guess you’re hallucinating then.” 

“Well, that’s not entirely out of the realm of possibilities,” he mumbled. He touched his own forehead as though he were feeling for a fever. He had been gravely wounded, it wouldn’t be strange for his body temperature to be running high. Munakata blinked a few times when he felt fine. 

“Humans are dumber than I expected,” the shifter scoffed under his breath. 

Shaking his head, Munakata rubbed his temple. “I apologize for my _stupidity_ then, but I’ve never heard of any such thing,” he stated. 

“So that means it’s impossible—because you haven't heard of it?” he asked. His face hadn’t moved or made any sign of actually being angry, but his words held a bite.

“No.” Munakata rolled his eyes. “But what you’re trying to tell me is that you…you are the dragon I just fought?” he asked. 

“Yup.” 

“So you can shift your form and become the Red Dragon?” Munakata asked. He had begun to lean forward, purely due to his own intrigue, but he abruptly stopped, remembering how bruised he was. 

“Yup.” That certainly explained the horns and strange markings on his arms and face. 

Glancing around, he scanned the cavern looking for his saber. It lay against the wall close to the front of the cave and there was no way he could get to it now. If this dragon wanted to kill him, Munakata would practically be defenseless.

Holding his left hand out, he frowned, purple eyes glaring at the creature in front of him, “I’m a very powerful mage and even though I am hurt right now, I could still put up a fight. Plus, from the looks of it, you’re not doing too well yourself,” he said, his gaze flicking towards the bandage around his arm.

“I’m not gonna fight ya’,” the dragon said. Pulling his cigarette from his mouth, he flicked the burned down ash onto the ground.

“What?” he asked, softly. “Then…why did you take me?” The dragon lay down slowly, leaning on his unharmed shoulder. 

“Bargaining tool,” he muttered, shutting his eyes as though he were about to go to sleep. 

“Bargaining tool? For what? The King has no attachment to me. I may be a powerful Magus, but the King would be a fool to trade a man he hired for the Princess.” 

Grunting, the dragon rolled onto his back, “You talk too much,” he sighed, shutting his eyes.

Munakata’s brow twitched as he watched the man fall asleep. So much for that conversation, though Munakata was deeply unsatisfied. He had so many questions! To think that dragons not only existed but also had the ability to take on a human form? Were all dragons like this, or was the Red Dragon special? There was so little information on dragons and here he was with the opportunity to finally speak to one and the lazy creature had decided to fall asleep. 

Sighing, Munakata softly in took a few long breaths. Sleep didn’t sound like a terrible idea actually, but he wanted to heal himself, especially the wound in his shoulder. The dragon’s claws had cut him deeply. While it had seemingly stopped bleeding, the telling ache against the fabric of the dress told him the cut was rather delicate and could re-open with even the slightest of movement. Not wanting to do so in his sleep, he thought it best to deal with the wound now.

Turning away from the dragon, he curled his fingers under the bottom of the dress, pulling it over his head with his one good arm. He winced, letting out a small noise of pain—the blood on the tunic underneath the long dress had dried, sticking a little to the gash. Tugging down on the sleeve, he inspected the wound, grimacing at how deep it actually was. It had been a long time since he’d actually been hurt in a battle. Thankfully, he had some magical energy left after the fight, and being knocked out for gods knew how long did help to replenish his stores as well. Slowly, he removed the tunic from his body and grimaced again at the large bruise which covered the majority of his side. That damned dragon had really hit him hard.

He wasn’t certain he would be able to heal the bruise, but he knew he could heal the wound in his shoulder. A gentle white light swirled in his hand, the light moving to his fingertips as he brought his hand up to the injury, focusing on the first opened gash. He had not been involved in a physical battle for a good while and he couldn’t remember the last time he had to heal a wound this deep. Shutting his eyes, he traced his finger over the large cut, groaning as his skin slowly stitched back together. Sweat dripped from his dark blue locks and he took a few deep breaths, waiting for the pain to subside. Healing was a difficult process, it was beneficial in the long run, but it still was incredibly painful while it happened. Moving his fingers to the second gash, he took another deep breath, leaning his head back. He swallowed and began to run his fingers up the middle gash, forcing himself to breathe as he did so.

“What the hell are you doing over there?” the dragon asked, a long sigh escaping the creature’s lips. Whipping his head around, Munakata turned to face him, blinking in surprise. His comment had been rather unexpected since the mage had assumed the dragon was sleeping. However, he was lying on his side, staring at him. Immediately, Munakata felt uncomfortable, knowing the creature’s gaze was fixated on him and his magic.

“I’m healing myself so I don’t re-open the wound _you_ gave me, Red Dragon,” he scoffed, angry the dragon had interrupted the healing process. Slowly, the white light disappeared as he lowered his hand. 

“I didn’t exactly come out of the battle unscathed,” he murmured, his golden eyes glancing towards the poorly wrapped bandage on his own shoulder. 

“I’m aware. How long will we be staying here?” Munakata inquired. 

“Dunno, ‘til I feel like leaving. Probably go back to my village at some point,” he said, yawning.

“So there are more of you? Are you all shifters or is it just you?” he asked. He couldn’t believe there was a whole village of creatures he had never heard of. How had no one found it? If only he knew where in Shizume they were.

“All shifters,” the dragon shrugged. Munakata sighed. Getting any sort of in-depth answer out of the creature was next to impossible. 

“Are all of them as pleasant as you?” he snarked.

“Are all humans as obnoxious as you?” the dragon retorted. Turning away from him, Munakata shut his eyes and took a deep breath. 

“I’d like to concentrate on healing myself. Please do not interrupt me,” he said quietly. He didn’t really expect him to say much anyway, since up to this point he had been anything but talkative.

“Suoh Mikoto.” 

“What?” Munakata asked, glancing back at him. 

He had rolled onto his back once more. Staring up at the ceiling, a small puff of smoke left his lips. “S’my name,” he shrugged. “I’m tired of you callin’ me ‘dragon’ with that condescending tone of yours.” 

“Alright. I’m Munakata Reisi,” he said, “and it would make me very happy if you could be quiet while I do this.” He certainly didn’t have to ask him twice to be quiet. Suoh fell silent, and he seemed to be sleeping while Munakata finished healing the last gash in his shoulder. It throbbed painfully and he sat still, waiting until the pain had begun to subside to grab the dress. Groaning, he continued to regret wearing the damn dress in the first place. At least the spell on his hair had worn off, returning it to its normal short length. He was thankful he’d worn a tunic and pants underneath the dress, but it was going to be too cold to sleep in the simple outfit. 

Lying down, he felt exhaustion taking over his body. His side hurt and his magic had been drained after healing his wound. It seemed as though Suoh had no intention of killing him, and while the cave floor wasn’t comfortable in the slightest, at least he could sleep without worrying for his life.

~~~

“Why are you wearing that dress anyway?” was the first thing Munakata heard as his eyes fluttered opened, staring at Suoh leaning against the cave wall.

“It was a disguise,” he groaned, pushing himself up off of the cold ground. His body still ached, now not only from the wear of the battle but also from sleeping on the damned rock floor. Of all the places the dragon could’ve picked to stop, this was possibly the worst.

“A disguise?” he snorted. “You look nothing like her,” he said softly, glancing away from the mage. 

There was a distance in his eyes Munakata hadn’t seen before. Generally the dragon looked bored or tired, but speaking of the Princess made him look incredibly melancholy, it surprised the mage.

“Well we weren’t sure if you were looking for her specifically or just any princess,” he muttered.

“Tch,” Suoh scoffed. Munakata didn’t really expect him to elaborate. Since he hadn’t been forthcoming about _anything_ , Munakata had very low expectations of any sort of meaningful conversation. 

“Why are you after Princess Anna?” he asked, assuming he wouldn’t receive an answer. Suoh sighed, and pressed his head against the cave wall. 

“None of your damn business.” Munakata wasn’t sure if he preferred it when Suoh ignored him or when he rejected him. Suoh was breathing heavily, and Munakata noted he had managed to change the bandage around his shoulder. Had his ice wound really cut him so deeply? Perhaps he was more susceptible to the attack since he appeared to be a fire dragon. Still, blood was seeping through the new bandage. Munakata didn’t know anything about shifters, but a large loss of blood for any creature was never good.

His head began to spin. If Suoh died in this cave, Munakata realized the probability of _his_ death would greatly increase. He had no idea where he was, no source of food or water. But maybe they weren’t moving forward because Suoh _couldn’t_. He was clearly in more pain than he wanted to admit.

Swallowing, Munakata let out a sigh and stood up slowly, making his way towards the red-haired creature. Suoh let out a growl and a small flame spat from his mouth. 

“What the hell are you doing?” he asked as Munakata knelt down in front of him. 

“You’re in pain. Don’t deny it—that’s why we haven’t moved. You _can’t_ get back to your village because the wound I gave you isn’t healing properly.” Reaching forward, Munakata tried to remove the poorly tied bandage, but Suoh jerked his body back. He let out a small growl, pain apparent on his face as he brought his hand to cover the wound.

“Don’t,” he panted, glaring daggers at the mage. Munakata sighed. 

“Suoh. I want to _help_ you. We’re both going to die if you insist on being stubborn. We need food and water. You saw me heal myself yesterday, I’ll do the same for you.”

Violet eyes met angry amber ones, Suoh panting as he stared at Munakata. It was apparent to the mage the dragon didn’t trust him at all, and really Munakata couldn’t blame him. Dragons hadn’t been around humans for years—what reason did Suoh have to trust him? Truthfully, Munakata didn’t trust Suoh either. He didn’t avert his gaze from the dragon’s, holding his ground with confidence; still he tried to look as calm as possible, not wanting to set the other off.

“Please, let me help,” he said quietly. A puff of smoke huffed from Suoh’s lips, a hint of red on his cheeks while he slowly lowered his hand, begrudgingly accepting Munakata’s offer.

“Fine,” he growled through gritted teeth. 

“It’s not going to be painless,” he spoke softly, soothingly. “So I’ll talk you through what I’m doing so nothing surprises you,” he said. “First, I’m going to remove the—well quite frankly—poorly tied bandage from your arm.”

“I can do without the damn judgmental commentary,” Suoh snapped. 

Rolling his eyes, Munakata raised his hand and pinched at the edge of the cloth, slowly peeling it away from the skin. He winced, staring at the blood which was still gently oozing from the deep gash in his shoulder. If he hadn’t made a move to heal the wound now, it most likely would’ve gotten infected, making their situation far graver.

“Now, I…I’ve never healed a dragon shifter before, but I’d expect your body’s make-up isn’t all that different from that of a human’s,” he said quietly, collecting the white healing magic in his palm.

“So you plan on trying this without knowing if it’ll work? Great.” 

“I can do without the judgmental commentary…” Munakata retorted and Suoh rolled his eyes this time. “What most don’t realize beforehand is that healing is quite painful as the magic forces your cells to rapidly repair themselves, so be prepared for that…and try not to move.” Raising his palm, he held the white magic over the wound. “I’m going to start,” he said softly, watching as the dragon’s skin slowly began to repair itself.

A roar erupted from Suoh’s lips and he yanked his arm away from Munakata, who fell forward towards him. “What the hell!?” he cried. “What the hell are you doing to me?!” he growled angrily, his chest heaving. Reaching out his free hand, Munakata grabbed Suoh’s wrist tightly, glaring at him. 

“I told you not to move, Suoh!” he sighed. “You could damage yourself more if you do! Shut your eyes and stop acting like an infant!” he snapped, his brow twitching. “Are you ready?” Taking a deep breath, Suoh nodded. Munakata brought his hand up to the wound again, watching the skin began to slowly heal once more. Suoh grunted, slamming his eyes shut as his face twitched in pain. 

“Dammit, this is worse than when you actually fucking shot ice at me,” he groaned. Munakata focused on the wound, pooling his magic in his palm. He hoped the large concentration of magic would speed up the healing process, since Suoh seemed to be handling it so poorly. His hand shook slightly as he pulled back, letting out a soft sigh. 

“There…” he mumbled. Pulling up the bottom of the dress, he ripped a piece of the bottom off and re-tied the bandage around his shoulder. Tying it gently and with far more precision than Suoh had done, he sat back, letting the other know he was finished. “It will still ache but at least you won’t bleed out,” he said. Sighing, he felt slightly drained by the large amount of magic he had put into the healing spell.

“Thanks…” Suoh whispered. 

“Well, now you can shift and get us to wherever the hell you plan on taking me. I’d ask to be taken home, but at this point I find it highly doubtful you’ll bring me back after going through all the trouble—” he abruptly stopped speaking as Suoh fell forward a bit, his head resting against Munakata’s shoulder. “S-Suoh! Please get a hold of yourself!” he grunted. 

“Can’t shift,” he muttered, his body un-moving as he lay against Munakata. His eyes were shut and his breathing was heavy, perhaps the magic was too much for him? The healing process looked like it had worked, he probably just needed more rest.

“Why’s that? Do you need to sleep more?” Munakata asked quietly. His heart pounded in his ears and he couldn’t help the blush that rose to his cheeks. Up close, Suoh was quite stunning. His features seemed tired, but his skin was smooth and the markings which trailed down his arms and cheeks were far more intricate than Munakata had realized, red dancing across his pale white skin.

“S’not a full moon…” he mumbled. Blinking, Munakata glanced towards the entrance of the cave. He wasn’t quite sure what time of day it was, but he could tell it wasn’t anywhere close to evening; the full moon had been the other night. So he was only able to shift during the full moon? Questions began to bubble up inside of him once more. He knew Suoh wouldn’t answer, nor did he think it was really the best time to ask, with him leaning against him like this.

“Maybe you should lay down,” he whispered. He wrapped his fingers around the dragon’s good shoulder and was about to push him back as Suoh’s hand shot up and grabbed Munakata’s wrist, holding him in place.

“You smell nice.” 

“W-What?” Munakata blushed, completely taken off-guard by the comment.

“Did you put on perfume to go with your girly costume?” he asked.

“N-No…” Munakata stammered, unsure of how to respond. He was certain he didn’t smell good after being stuck in a cave for a few days with no means of caring for his personal hygiene. 

Finally, he pulled back with a sigh, leaning against the cave wall, “Just let me sleep and then we can leave,” Suoh whispered. “The village is about a day’s walk from here…” he trailed off, not wanting to admit he hadn’t had the capability to make it home when he had first kidnapped the mage.

“Alright,” Munakata muttered with a sigh, still flustered from how close Suoh had gotten to him. He turned around and leaned against the cave wall himself, while he regained his composure. He had used a surprising amount of magical energy on Suoh, though at the time it hadn’t seemed like much. Even though he had just awoken, more sleep didn’t seem like such a terrible idea.

~~~

Awashima was pacing outside of the castle. They had waited far too long to leave. She wanted to believe Munakata wasn’t dead. She wanted to believe the dragon had simply kidnapped him and wasn’t planning on eating him or killing him, but it was hard to remain optimistic, given the manner of his kidnapping. The longer they waited, the more likely it was that something would happen.

The King had been gracious enough to allow her and Fushimi to stay over, mostly to gather themselves. Awashima had spent the majority of the night tossing and turning, while Fushimi had spent his evening gathering information. The dragon had come from the east every time, flying by Homra Mountain and though Fushimi wasn’t certain the dragon actually resided there, he figured it was the best place to start looking.

“Awashima, stop,” Fushimi snapped. This was going to be a long journey if she couldn’t control her nervous energy.

“What’s taking the King so long? We said we wanted to leave first thing in the morning,” she sighed and stopped moving, rubbing her forehead. 

“It _is_ still morning,” he replied, “and if you’re really that anxious about it, we could just leave.”

“No…no.” She knew Munakata would be frustrated if they forgot to be polite. “We should thank the King for his hospitality,” she murmured. “I just wish he would hurry up. We have a long journey ahead of us and the faster we leave, the quicker we’ll find the Captain.”

“Don’t remind me,” he grumbled. Fushimi wasn’t looking forward to the long journey. He had joined the guild to do magical research, not long and involved quests. Unfortunately for him, Munakata had taken a liking to him and was convinced he was one of the strongest mages in the guild and so here he was, looking for the idiot. “If that idiot hadn’t decided he had to wear a damn dress, maybe we wouldn’t be worrying about this.”

Smirking, Awashima nudged him, “Glad to hear you’re concerned, Fushimi.”

“Tsk. I’m not. Whatever happened to the Captain…he probably…deserved it,” he mumbled, folding his arms angrily. Awashima continued to smile; she knew Fushimi acted gruff and uncaring, but he wouldn’t have come along on this quest in the first place if he wasn’t truly concerned for the Captain’s well-being.

“Nothing will have happened to him,” she said. “It’ll all be fine.” She sighed, watching as the King finally came to the front of the castle, approaching the two mages. “Finally.” 

“Good morning Awashima, Fushimi,” he said, bowing his head. “I want to thank you again for your efforts last night and I am truly sorry for what happened,” he murmured. “Anna is very grateful as well and she hopes to be able to thank your Captain herself soon.” King Iwafune’s eyes held a gentle sadness, though they all could tell he was relieved it wasn’t his daughter who had been taken, especially after his flippant comment from the evening prior.

“It is our job to help others, that is always what the Captain has said. I’m sure he will be happy to hear that Anna is safe,” she nodded. “Thank you for your hospitality and for allowing us to stay last evening.” She had no desire to hint at the Captain’s possible state of being, mostly because she refused to believe the man would’ve died from something like this. He had to be alive, and she and Fushimi were going to find him.

“Can I offer you anything else?” he asked and both of the mages shook their head.

“You’ve done plenty. Thank you,” Awashima said and with a final goodbye, both mages began to head on their way. 

They were quiet as they moved away from the castle, their feet crunching against the gravel. Fushimi knew the journey would take a good few days—Homra Mountain was on the edge of the eastern borders of Shizume and directly beyond it were the uninhabitable wastelands. No one had explored further than the wastelands in ages, so if the Red Dragon had taken Munakata beyond that area…well, Fushimi thought it best not to think of that. He didn’t want to stress Awashima out more than she already was.

“Fushimi,” Awashima whispered finally, after a bout of silence. She stopped walking and lowered her gaze to the ground. Before continuing, a long sigh left her lips. “What are our chances of finding him…do you think?”

  “Tsk. There’s no need to worry about that right now. Let’s just get as far east as we can and find an inn to stay in for the evening,” Fushimi huffed and continued walking forward. He didn’t turn around to check if she was following, he could hear her footsteps behind him. He didn’t want to make any promises he wasn’t sure he could keep. Seeing a disappointed Awashima wasn’t something Fushimi was equipped to deal with.

~~~

Munakata hadn’t been so exhausted in quite a long while. The cave hadn’t been a comfortable place to sleep, so he was grateful Suoh had finally decided to set out. According to the dragon shifter, their home village wasn’t far from the base of the other side of Homra Mountain. Of course it had immediately made sense to the mage why humans hadn’t known of the Dragon clan; no one went beyond the mountain, since anyone who did so disappeared in the wasteland.

Munakata knew it was impossible to escape, since going around or over the mountain alone would surely get him killed, so he trudged behind Suoh. Heading to the other’s village was his best possible chance for survival.

He was surprised when they reached the base of the mountain—he couldn’t believe how green everything was. A long field sprawled out in front of them, ending where it met a line of trees in the far distance. Silently, Munakata wondered where exactly the wastelands began, because as the wind blew around them he couldn’t see anything but green. 

Munakata had begun to inquire more about their clan, hoping to learn something—anything actually—about the dragon shifter and his people. It was information mages had been searching for for as long as Munakata could remember. And now he was here, walking behind a man who had the ability to become the very creature he had wanted to know more about, and the man refused to answer any of his questions. Once again, Suoh had silenced him when Munakata had begun to ask questions that the red-haired man deemed annoying. Between the silence and the amount Suoh slept, he could only hope that someone else in the Dragon clan would be more interested in speaking to him. 

Currently they were making their way through the tall grass in complete silence. Unsettling silence, really. Munakata wasn’t much for small talk, but this utter quiet was too much for him. Perhaps it was simply because he had so many unanswered questions that he wanted to speak up so badly. 

His hands gripped at the middle of the torn dress, holding it up so he could push through the tall grass. Really this stupid dress had been a terrible choice, but it was too cold to walk around in the thin pants and tunic alone, so he kept it on.

Clearing his throat, he hoped to get the dragon’s attention, “Suoh, I know I am technically your prisoner, but would it be possible to request a change of wardrobe when we arrive in your village?” he asked. 

Glancing behind to stare at him, Suoh cocked an eyebrow. “Mmm, I dunno. You look pretty like this,” he smirked. Huffing out a breath of air, Munakata stomped through the grass, walking past where Suoh had stopped. 

“Ha-ha, very funny. I healed your wound, I think you could do me this one favor,” he scoffed. They both knew damn well that if he hadn’t healed Suoh’s wound, the probability of them dying would’ve been much higher. If nothing else, he really did want to wear something a bit more comfortable.

The shifter rolled his eyes and walked next to him, “No need to get upset, I was just teasin’ ya’.” 

“Ah…” Munakata sighed. 

“Are all mages as stiff as you?” he asked and Munakata could feel the dragon’s amber eyes glancing up and down his figure. Blowing out a soft puff of air, Munakata flicked his violet eyes to meet his gaze. 

“Are all dragons as silent as you?” 

Rolling his eyes Suoh walked forward, “I’ll give you one. One annoying question.” 

“You’re allowing me to ask you one thing about you?” Munakata asked, following after him as quickly as he could in the dress.

Holding a finger up, Suoh stared at him, “One. And don’t try and sneakingly make it more than one by tying multiple big words together like an asshole.” 

“That’s fine. I actually only need one,” Munakata said, staring down the dragon. His violet eyes glistened with a harsh intensity, his blue bangs fluttered across his forehead. He’d been waiting to ask this one question the entire time he’d been around the dragon. Actually he had already asked it, though unsurprisingly, Suoh had not answered at the time. “Why…why did you want to kidnap Princess Anna?” 

Suoh’s amber eyes widened for a moment, but his brow quickly furrowed and his fists clenched at his side. He turned from Munakata and began to walk off quickly. “Not that,” he growled. 

“You said one question,” Munakata hummed, once again following after the red-haired man. 

“No.” 

“Why not? You didn’t provide me with any parameters so I would say it’s a perfectly valid question. So why are you so resistant to answering it?” Munakata asked.

“Because,” Suoh snapped, turning around to glare at him. “Even if I tell you, you’re not going to believe me. You’re a human, just like them, and you were hired by that king. It’s clear to me where your loyalties lie.”

“You know nothing about me, Suoh. You’re making assumptions I’m going to follow the King simply because he offered me money? I’m nowhere near the King. There isn’t a human for miles, I have no reason to not listen to your opinion and make an informed decision.”

The two stared each other down for a moment, and Suoh’s amber eyes shook with frustration. Glancing up at the cloudless sky, he let out a small puff of smoke. “Anna…is that what he called her?” he asked. 

“Yes, Princess Anna,” Munakata said, waiting for Suoh to continue. 

“She belongs to us,” he whispered quietly. 

“Well that’s absurd. No one _belongs_ to anyone. Not truly,” he scoffed. 

“No. You don’t get it,” Suoh growled, tilting his head back down. “Anna is a dragon.” 

Blinking, Munakata attempted to process the words Suoh had finally spoken out loud. Anna wasn’t a dragon? She was the King’s daughter and the King wasn’t a dragon. Anna looked nothing like what Suoh looked like, but of course, Suoh was the only dragon he had any experience with. Maybe there were other dragons who looked differently, or perhaps females matured differently. He attempted to open his mouth to ask for clarification, but he couldn’t quite find the words to speak.

“Anna is a dragon,” Suoh repeated. “I know, you’re thinking she doesn’t look like us or act like us. But, in a few months, when she hits puberty…” he trailed off, glancing down. 

“What?” Munakata couldn’t believe it. Questions shot through his mind. How did the girl even come to be in the King’s care? _What_ exactly happened in a few months when she hit puberty? Rubbing his forehead, he tried to wrap his mind around the concept. “What is going to happen when she hits puberty and…and _how_ did the King get to her in the first place?” 

“Once her body has reached maturity, she’ll transform on the first full moon whether she wants to or not,” Suoh sighed. “And after that, she will look like a normal dragon. And…I don’t know how he came to know of our existence, but she was taken from her home when she was a baby. It took years for us to find where she had been taken,” he explained slowly. It was the most Munakata had heard the dragon talk and as he did, his eyes shimmered with a soft pain. Munakata hadn’t been around Suoh for long and he still could tell talking about this sort of thing was incredibly painful for him. “The first baby we’ve had in so long, and she’s taken away from us, right under our noses,” he whispered, stepping forward. “C’mon, we’re close and I want to get back while there’s still daylight,” he muttered.

“The first? But surely you must-”

“I gave you your one question, Munakata,” he hissed. “I’m not going to answer anymore.” He continued on ahead, leaving Munakata rather flabbergasted. The Princess was a dragon. Of course, he did have more questions, but by now he knew Suoh wouldn’t be answering any of them. Still, with what Suoh had said, Munakata had begun to piece quite a few things together. 

It now made sense why Suoh had attacked on the Blood Moon; dragons could only transform during the full moon. Perhaps they were strongest during the Blood Moon? Also, they were obviously a species that was having trouble reproducing. Anna was the first baby they had had in years, and with how angry Suoh had grown, Munakata could only assume there hadn’t been any babies since. Dragons, Munakata feared, were slowly going extinct.

But the strangest part of all this was the King. Somehow King Iwafune had known of not only the existence of dragons, but he knew _exactly_ where they were…and he had known of the existence of a baby dragon. But _why_ had he taken Anna from here? What purpose would that serve? And what did he plan on doing when Anna did reach maturity? It was possible he didn’t know what would happen to her, but if he was smart enough to find a way to take her, Munakata could only assume Iwafune was smart enough to know the girl wouldn’t look human forever.

Clenching his fists into the fabric of the dress, Munakata felt frustration trickle under his skin. The King had paid him to protect a girl he had stolen from her true home. Munakata liked to believe he used his powers to protect people who couldn’t protect themselves, but perhaps he should’ve been protecting Anna from Iwafune, not Suoh. 

~~~

Iwafune shut the door after saying goodnight to Anna for the evening. A tired look washed over his face as he pressed his back against the wall. He was running out of time and his resources were slowly being depleted. Mishakuji was injured. The damn _High Magus_ from Scepter, the supposed most powerful mage in all of Shizume, had been taken by the beast. And of course, his underlings had followed after him.

As much as he wanted to believe this whole ordeal would be settled now the dragon had claimed _someone_ , he knew it wouldn’t be the case. They wanted Anna back, but Iwafune couldn’t give her up, not now. Not after everything they had been working for.

He walked down the grand staircase, heading to the eastern wing of the castle, his own private wing. All he really wanted was to sit down in the dining hall with a cool glass of wine. He’d even had one of his favorite foreign wines imported. It had been meant for a celebration, for when Munakata ridded him of the damn red beast. Now, he wanted to drink for a very different reason.

“King,” A deep female voice called to him as he continued down the hall. A half smile appeared on his lips as he glanced towards Hirasaka, who had seemingly appeared out of the shadows. “You called for me?” Iwafune was used to her behavior, his most trusted spy had yet to ever let him down. 

“Douhan,” he sighed softly. “I did. I am in need of your services once again. I didn’t want it to get this far but it seems once again, I will be relying on you,” he chuckled softly, rubbing the back of his neck.

“As always, I am happy to do your bidding,” she stated, bowing her head one time in his direction.

“Come with me, we will speak in my study,” he replied.

The two continued down the hall, until Iwafune stopped in front of a large suit of armor. Reaching up, he moved the spearhead off of the tall weapon, pressing on the button hidden beneath the steel. A click was heard as the wall behind the armor moved, opening to a large dark room. Stepping inside, Iwafune lit the lamps and took a seat at the desk in the middle of the private study. Bookshelves lined the tall walls and papers were strewn about on the various desks. Empty cups lay about as silent testimony of the late nights Iwafune had spent drinking and researching. 

“The mages from Scepter…” he began softly, folding his hands together. “I need you to follow them. I believe they’re headed to the dragon village,” he explained. “They’re trailing the Red Dragon, hoping to find their Captain.” With a sigh, he leaned back in his chair, “I was hoping the High Magus would be able to kill that creature, but alas.” 

“Do you want me to follow only?” she asked. 

“Mmm…yes. I don’t believe you could handle fighting them alone. If you can find a way to steer those two away from the village that would be ideal. I recognize this may be an impossible task though,” he admitted. “Ultimately, whether or not Munakata’s underlings get to him is rather irrelevant to me,” he sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose. “The real problem lies with the High Magus and the Red Dragon. I believe the Red Dragon took Munakata, and if the shifter talks to him, there is no doubt in my mind he will reveal Anna’s true origin. Munakata has an idiotic sense of justice and will side with the Red Dragon if he believes him. And if _that_ happens, it’s possible the High Magus and the Red Dragon will fight against us,” Iwafune explained. “I need you to infiltrate the village and attempt to find out what they plan to do, I fear I am going to run out of time,” he admitted softly.

“Understood,” Hirasaka said, nodding her head. “I will leave immediately and find what they’re planning.” 

“Do you remember how you arrived there before? Or do you still have possession of the map I gave you last time?”

“I still have it,” she stated. Standing up, he made his way over to the cupboard, pulling out a bottle of wine from the large cabinet. 

“At the very least I have _one_ good thing,” he chuckled, placing a glass in front of both himself and her.

“You aren’t planning on seeing him tonight?” she whispered, watching as Iwafune poured the red liquid into the cup. He shook his head slowly.

“I don’t think I could face him after such a terrible failure. It was supposed to end tonight and now…” he chuckled, swirling the cup in front of his face. He took a small sip, letting the alcohol permeate on his tongue, burning his insides ever so slightly as it slid down his throat. “Well, Douhan, it seems I’ve created more of a mess. I should never have involved Munakata…” 

“Well, with any luck perhaps the dragon will have killed him?” she offered, taking a sip of the drink he had placed in front of her. 

“Hah…I suppose we could dream,” he sighed. “Leave as soon as you can and return here. I will begin to prepare for a possible attack. Whatever happens Douhan, I’m not going to lose him. Not after all this.” 

“Don’t worry,” she whispered gently, watching the red liquid coat the clear glass. “You won’t.” 

~~~

“KING!” The minute the village stepped in to view, a cheer called out and shorter male with dirty blond hair came dashing towards Suoh. Practically jumping on him, Suoh and the stranger fell to the ground, a cloud of dust floating into the air around their bodies. Munakata coughed and waved his hand in front of his mouth, attempting to avoid inhaling too much of the dust.

“Gods, Totsuka,” Suoh groaned, “you don’t have to attack me.” The dragon grunted and pushed himself up slowly, the exuberant male sitting back. His dirty blond hair was straight and he had much smaller horns than Suoh. There were small tan markings on his cheeks, but no intricate designs like Suoh. Munakata had heard this boy call Suoh ‘King’, so maybe the Red Dragon was of a higher rank than the others? 

“You’re alive!” he sighed happily, nuzzling his cheek against Suoh’s. 

“What—did you think I was dead?” he asked, raising a questioning eyebrow. 

“Well, I didn’t want to believe you were, but it has been a few days since you attempted to storm the castle…” he muttered, looking away. “We were all starting to grow a little worried when you didn’t return right away like you had the other times. Izumo was preparing for the worst, but _I_ said it was probably because you had succeeded and were celebrating with her!”

“I was not preparing for the worst, Tatara. Don’t be a shit.” Having been distracted by the easily excitable dragon shifter, Munakata hadn’t even noticed the taller, golden-haired man walk up. Around his eyes were dark brown markings, as though he were wearing a pair of dark glasses and his dark brown horns swung backwards, hovering over the top of his head. “If anyone was ‘preparing for the worst’ it was you. Constantly freaking out about whether or not he would actually come back. I told you you were being overdramatic.”

A soft chuckle left Suoh’s lips and Munakata felt heat rise to his cheeks. It was the first time he’d seen the shifter looking happy. The entire time he had been with him, he’d been so quietly angry. But at home with his friends, he looked far less tense. 

Standing up, the blond turned his gaze to Munakata, stepping towards him. His light brown eyes flickered with excitement as he moved closer to the mage’s face. “Who are you? Are you a human?!” he said, smiling happily. Pursing his lips, Munakata didn’t have time to decide if he was offended by the young dragon’s question, as he continued to speak. “I mean you have to be, since you don’t have horns or markings like us,” he chuckled. “You’re very beautiful!” Narrowing his eyes, the one Munakata heard Suoh call Totsuka, darted back towards the red-haired male. “Did you kidnap a beautiful human woman to mate with?” he chuckled devilishly, covering his mouth with his palm. Apparently, not all shifters were as silent as Suoh.

Pressing a hand to Totsuka’s face, Suoh pushed him out of the way with a growl. “Quit it.” 

“My name is Munakata Reisi and I am very much a human _man_ ,” he scoffed, adjusting the glasses on his face. Totsuka’s eyes widened, un-phased by Suoh’s action. 

“I’m Totsuka Tatara and this is Kusanagi Izumo,” he smiled, gesturing to himself and the taller male. “To be honest, I don’t really care if you’re a man or a woman. The fact remains that you’re human and I have plenty of questions!” he smiled. Munakata sighed. One dragon would barely answer his questions and the other wouldn't shut up. Suoh smirked, apparently happy Munakata was getting a taste of his own medicine. “What do you eat? What do you drink? Do you live in a castle?! Can you perform _magic_?!” The questions shot at him in rapid-fire. 

“Well, I don’t mind answering some questions,” he smiled. “I know I have some questions for all of you. But first I’d really like a change of clothes and some water.” 

Totsuka’s eyes widened and he zoomed forward, “I can make clothes!” 

“No you can’t,” Suoh muttered, raising an eyebrow at the excited male.

“I can!” 

“No, he can’t,” Kusanagi sighed, folding his arms. “He made one thing and he thinks he’s an expert now.” 

“Okay, maybe I just started, but it’s my new hobby and I think I’m getting to be pretty good at it!” The blond stood proudly. 

Turning to Kusanagi, Suoh shook his head. “Take the mage to the market and get him something normal to wear,” he said, rolling his eyes. “Then bring him back to me, he’s my prisoner,” he smirked, glancing towards Munakata. Kusanagi nodded without asking any questions and waved his hand towards the mage, signaling him to follow. 

“Aww! King! I could’ve done it,” Totsuka whined, following after Suoh. The two headed towards a different part of the village. 

The town was unsurprisingly small. Munakata assumed they had to be, to stay off of the map as long as they had. The houses were made of mostly stone, not having more than two stories. The roads were mostly a mix of gravel and dirt and it was clear the town wasn’t very highly populated. A few houses were meant to be specialty stores for those who specialized in a craft and down a few paths, Munakata could see stalls which lined the streets. There were full of food, tools, and other wares. As they walked through the streets, Munakata could feel eyes staring at him, however, he wasn’t sure if it was because of the dress or the fact that he was glaringly human. 

Glancing behind him, Kusanagi smirked. “Are you from a big city, human?” Munakata’s gaze snapped around to stare back at the taller man in front of him. 

“Mm. Yes I am,” he stated. 

“So I’m sure we must look incredibly primal to you,” he chuckled, tucking his hands into the pockets of his pants. 

“I don’t know if primal is the word I would use,” Munakata muttered, glancing around. “Though it is smaller than I expected.” He decided not to add the fact that the lack of activity in the town and minor number of shifters he saw only confirmed his theory about their declining population. “Suoh refused to answer any of my questions,” he continued, “but perhaps you would be so kind as to provide me with a few answers, Kusanagi was it?” he asked, walking next to the man. 

“Mmm, Mikoto isn’t the most forthcoming about anything—especially if you caught him in a mood. Seeing as he came back here with you and not our missing dragon, I can only assume he wasn’t happy.” 

“No. Not exactly…” Munakata sighed, pushing his glasses up to rub his eyes. He couldn’t wait to lie down in more comfortable clothes; fatigue threatening to overtake him.

“I’ll answer some questions after you explain who the hell you are and why Mikoto came back with you,” Kusanagi agreed. 

“My name is Munakata Reisi. I am a High Magus and leader of the magical guild, Scepter. I was hired by the King to protect the girl who he _calls_ his daughter. I didn’t realize the circumstances,” he whispered. “I fought with Suoh, though when my men showed up to back me up, he took me and ran. He thought he would maybe be able to use me as a bargaining tool. Unfortunately for him, the King has no attachment to me,” he chuckled softly. 

“So you’re a magic wielder?” Kusanagi asked. “Guess I can’t fault you if you didn’t know.” He shrugged while stepping in to the store. “Pick something out you think looks comfortable. Probably won’t be anything fancy like in your city.” 

“It’s fine, anything to be out of this dress,” he sighed, rubbing the back of his neck as he glanced around the tiny shop. 

It didn’t take Munakata long to pick out a long pair of black pants, a belt, and a plain white tunic, with a medium-length blue robe as a cover. It was nothing like the mages robes he had at his home, but it was much better than the dress he had been trudging around in. Changing in the store, Munakata adjusted the clothes in the small room towards the back. Thankfully, the bruise on his side had faded significantly, making the changing process much faster. Kusanagi gave the keeper money and exited the store with the mage. Adjusting his boots, Munakata sighed feeling relieved; this was much more comfortable and he could keep his saber by his side now—if Suoh gave it back to him. So far, he seemed to be allowed simple freedoms, but he wasn’t sure how long that would last. He was a prisoner after all. 

“Is Suoh your king?” Munakata asked, walking besides Kusanagi as they headed towards, what seemed to be, the residential part of the village. 

“Nah,” Kusanagi chuckled. “I guess you could label him as the village leader or leader of our clan. Tatara just calls him that because of a game they played when we were all kids.” 

“I see,” Munakata replied. “Are all of you in this town shifters? Are there other villages of shifters?” 

“We’re all shifters, but I have no idea if there are other villages. Most of us have never ventured far from here,” he added. “Mikoto is the only one who leaves. Once we discovered where our baby had been taken to, he was insistent on getting her back. You seem intelligent,” Kusanagi sighed, “I’m sure you’ve figured out our numbers aren’t increasing,” he admitted quietly. 

Munakata nodded. “I assumed…” he whispered. 

“We can only shift on the full moon, but our power is the strongest during the Blood Moon. Mikoto attempted to regain our missing girl on those evenings. He refused to let any of us come with him, so he always went alone.” Kusanagi growled, clearly he was bothered by this. “I mean, I get it,” he continued, not giving Munakata a chance to ask him to elaborate. “Humans haven’t known of our existence for so long, it was better that way. Mikoto didn’t want them to realize how many of us there were nor did he want any of us to get hurt. Despite his gruff nature, he’s a pretty caring guy.” 

“Mm, I see…” Munakata muttered. Suoh had seemed anything but, still, he had yet to kill him. “Why the secrecy? Why do you not want humans to know of your existence?” Munakata asked.

“Humans have always been greedy beings, don’t you think?” Kusanagi asked, “I guess that’s a dumb thing to ask you, since you _are_ one. In the past, many of them used us for our power or killed us to sell scales or meat, anything they can get their hands on. Your King came and took the first child we had in years.” Stretching up, Kusanagi stopped walking as he glanced around at some of the houses which lined the streets. “We like the simple life. Things are peaceful here, or they were,” he sighed, continuing up the small hill towards Suoh’s house.

Clenching his fists at his side, Munakata didn’t reply to his guide. The shifters had been spending so much time hidden away, not wanting to deal with humans and yet Iwafune had come in and taken the one hope they had for their population growth. And why? Munakata couldn’t see a fathomable reason as to why the King had kidnapped the young dragon shifter. 

“Thank the gods you’re back safe!” Boomed a loud, unfamiliar voice from the doorway of Suoh’s house. 

“I wasn’t worried for a second!” Totsuka’s familiar laugh echoed in the doorway. 

Knocking on the front door, Kusanagi entered without waiting for any sort of answer. “Mikoto, I got him clothes.” He laughed, both of the men stepping inside of the house. The living room was warm from the gentle fire flickering in the fireplace. There was a long wooden table in the middle of the room, a few chairs and a long couch surrounded it. Totsuka, Suoh and a person Munakata had yet to meet were sat around the table, all looking cheerful. 

“Who the hell is this?!” the shorter shifter jumped up. His bright orange hair matched the spiral markings which trailed down the side of his neck to his shoulders, his small horns practically hidden underneath the mop of orange locks atop his head. Sniffing the air, he glared at Munakata. “He doesn’t smell like a shifter.” 

“Yata, calm down,” Suoh said, waving his hand casually. “S’the human mage I told you about.” 

“Oh,” he chuckled awkwardly, a light blush appearing on his cheeks. “Yata Misaki, nice to meet you, I guess,” he huffed, folding his arms as he flopped back down, clearly embarrassed by his outburst. 

Kusanagi immediately made his way to the kitchen. “Dinner for five then?” And all the shifters grunted in cheerful approval. Silently, Munakata took a seat in an empty chair and observed. Suoh didn’t talk much, it seemed he left that to Totsuka and Yata who had no problem controlling the room with their boisterous conversations. 

Kusanagi didn’t take long to cook whatever he was concocting in the kitchen and Munakata noted he seemed to rather enjoy handing the food out to everyone. He bowed his head gratefully, taking the plate of food from Kusanagi. The scent of it wafted into his nose, tickling his senses as he felt a gentle rumble in his stomach. He couldn’t remember the last time he had eaten, driven by his desire to survive long enough to change his damn clothes. Now that he was sitting down in a comfortable chair and wearing normal clothes, he couldn’t believe how hungry he had been. Not wanting to eat like a complete savage, he took his time, though every instinct in his body begged him to shove the meal into his mouth. Silently, he enjoyed the food, letting the others in the room do the talking.

Once the majority of the food had disappeared, Suoh stood up and waved his hands, yawning wide. “Alright,” he said. “Everyone out.” 

“But Mikoto-!” Yata pouted. 

“You just got back,” Totsuka sighed, leaning back against the couch in a huff. Rolling his eyes, Kusanagi gently nudged the back of Totsuka’s head.

“Come on, let’s go. Mikoto has a prisoner to deal with,” he teased. With a large sigh, both Yata and Totsuka stood up reluctantly. “We can all eat breakfast at my place tomorrow, alright?” he winked at Suoh and waved goodbye quickly as he ushered the two rowdy shifters out. 

Once the lively shifters had left, the room fell silent minus the crackle of the fire in the fireplace. Suoh stayed seated on the couch, eyes closed, his head relaxing against the soft cushion. He looked content, happy to be home. Munakata was hesitant to speak up, unsure of what Suoh expected of him as a prisoner. 

Opening one eye to stare at him, Suoh smirked. “And here I thought new clothes would make you look more manly. Seems I was wrong. Still pretty.” Munakata frowned. Suoh was always so damn blunt and the mage had a difficult time differentiating between when he was serious or teasing.

Letting out a sigh, Munakata slowly leaned forward in the empty chair, placing his finished bowl on the table. He moved slowly, not wanting to hurt his bruised side now that it was finally healing. Suoh stared at him, sniffing for a moment. He twisted his lips around, his tired eyes blinking painfully slow. Finally, he folded his arms and let out a large grunt. 

“Never had a prisoner before,” he muttered. “I don’t really know what to do with ya’.” More silence hung in the room as Munakata’s eyes twitched in annoyance. 

“What?” 

“You’re not an idiot though. If you tried to run, there’s no way you’d make it back to any sort of town anytime soon and if you fight, you’ll be overpowered.” Suoh shrugged. “Ah—so just stay here for the night and we’ll figure out a job or something for you tomorrow. M’tired,” he mumbled. 

Munakata’s fists clenched and he stood up, ignoring the slight pain in his side. “I want to help you,” he stated. His violet hues stared down at the lazy shifter in front of him. 

“Hah?” Suoh said, sitting up. He was rather shocked at the outburst from the mage. “It’s just a few bowls, we can clean ‘em tomorrow. Neat freak.” 

“Not with the cleaning, Suoh!” Munakata shook his head quickly. “I meant with Anna. I want to help you get her back.” 

Suoh leaned forward slowly, standing up to stare at the mage at eye level. “You want to help me get Anna back? Why?” 

“Because no one should be taken from their home. Anna won’t understand what she is when the time comes. She needs you,” he said, standing his ground. “I became a mage to help people who couldn’t use magic like I could. I studied and trained to become a High Magus to protect those around me. Justice is how we keep order in this world and King Iwafune has been incredibly unjust by stealing the one child your clan has seen for years. Legends say humans and dragons used to fight together. Let me lend you my power and we can fight together once again.” 

Suoh’s amber eyes blinked, listening to Munakata’s powerful declaration. He hadn’t been expecting it, nor was he quite sure what to do with the help the mage was offering.

“You delirious? Too full? Too tired?” Suoh spoke finally, narrowing his eyes at the other. 

“No, I’m genuinely offering my aid,” he scoffed. “Why is it you always find it so difficult to believe I could actually be interested in offering you support?”

“Sorry, uh, just wasn’t expecting that,” Suoh admitted. Sighing, he rubbed his arm. “You realize I can’t transform again until the full moon, right? We can’t begin to attempt to get her back for—I dunno, maybe twenty nights?” 

Munakata nodded. “I’m well aware. Besides, you were the one who said I had no way of going anywhere else,” he said, folding his arms.

“True, but, uh,” Suoh sighed, shifting his weight onto one hip. “What exactly does a High Magus do?” he asked. Munakata tried his best not to choke on the air he in took sharply as Suoh admitted to having no clue of what he was capable of. He probably didn’t know much about Munakata’s power, besides what he had witnessed during their first and only fight. Rubbing his forehead, Munakata’s eyes flicked about the room. He caught a glimpse of his saber in the corner and he immediately smirked, pressing his glasses up the bridge of his nose.

“Well, you’ll have to return my saber to me,” he began. “Simply put, I am not only a magic user, but I also am a trained knight as well. My speciality, as you are aware, is ice magic and usually I fuse my magic with the blade. It’s quite simple really,” he shrugged casually. “As I mentioned before, according to legends humans and dragons used to fight together. I have never been able to find textual evidence of such in human history books, but perhaps your records will state otherwise—if you have records even,” Munakata explained. “If there were special tactics, we could learn them over the next few weeks and perhaps with both of us, we would have a better chance of actually getting Anna back,” he smiled determinately.

Suoh took a seat back on the couch, running his hands down his face. “We have records. Never read ‘em, but we have ‘em,” he muttered. “You can go through ‘em, I guess…” 

“I know you refuse to bring your clansmen with you when you go to try and rescue the Princess. It’s rather commendable really, but you need help. You’ve now failed three times and the King most likely knows you won’t give up until you’ve gotten her back. He’ll be expecting you, but he may not expect us to come together. I could provide you with the boost of strength you need.” 

“How can you talk this much on so little sleep?” Suoh grunted, biting down on his lip. Munakata could tell the Red Dragon was considering the deal. The shifter stood, a large breath of air escaping his lips. “C’mon,” he muttered, making his way through the kitchen. Swinging the large wooden door open, Suoh stepped into a back room, where a large bed took up the majority of the space. “You can sleep here. I’ll take the couch.” 

“You’re giving the prisoner the bed?” he teased, raising an eyebrow at the Red Dragon. “How generous of you.”

“Shut up and take the damn bed. I can sleep anywhere but your damn side is still bruised. Tomorrow, I’ll have Kusanagi bring you to the small library in town and you can do whatever the hell you think will help you find whatever you’re looking for,” he muttered quickly. 

Munakata couldn’t help but smile softly, running a hand through his hair with a sigh. “Alright. Well, thank you for your hospitality, even if I am your prisoner,” he smirked. 

Shaking his head, Suoh backed out of the room, waving his hand at the other. “You talk too much,” he grunted. “But—” he rubbed the back of his neck, glancing to the mage. “Thanks.” 

A light blush tinted Munakata’s cheeks as he bowed his head to Suoh. “Good night.” 

~~~

“I’m not sure what you expect to find in this old archive.” Kusanagi coughed from the dust which flew into both their faces as he pushed the large door to the library open. “We haven’t touched it in years, but if Mikoto said it was fine then have at it,” he shrugged and grunted. “I guess it’s good we kept it all this time, since someone wants to use it.” 

Glancing around, Munakata let out a long sigh. His eyes glanced over the rows and rows of books and shelves, all completely disorganized. The library wasn’t very large, not compared to the libraries he had spent time in back home, but the clutter felt overwhelming as his purple hues scanned the area. Some of the books lay strewn about over the few tables in the middle open area. Shelves were dusty and Munakata was sure if he examined the rows carefully, books would be out of place.

“Seems like I have my work cut out for me then,” he smirked, glancing to Kusanagi. The man brushed his hand over a dust-covered desk in the front, pulling open one of the drawers. 

“Yeah have fun. Seems I found the matches if it gets too dark in here.” Placing them down, he saluted the mage. “Good luck,” he chuckled. “If you need us, just yell.” 

Once Kusanagi left, Munakata glanced around the library once again. He probably should’ve felt frustrated, but he only felt eager. He was ready to dive in and start reading as much as he could to learn about dragon shifters and their pasts. He could only assume this was a room full of books he had never read and that fact alone thrilled the mage. 

The first shelf he sorted through held mostly fictional works, though they were novels Munakata had never seen nor heard of. He knew he needed to search for battle techniques between humans and mages, but right now the temptation to curl up with one of the books and read for the rest of the evening tugged at his mind. He couldn’t remember the last time he had found time to read for pleasure. 

Moving away from the tempting literature, Munakata’s eyes scanned the books in the second row. More dusty fiction. It seemed the dragon shifters had quite the archive of novels written by their kind. It was a shame, he thought, they all were going to waste in the unused library. 

The third row was where Munakata found what he hoped he was looking for. Historical scrolls and tomes, all describing the history of the dragon shifters’ past. He could only hope these books contained the information about humans and dragons he was looking for. 

As he carried the large texts over to one of the tables in the middle of the room, he recognized in his mind that it was highly likely human history could’ve been written wrong. Humans were creatures with far too much hubris and Munakata was never surprised when history felt twisted in their favor. He hoped this one time, the humans were right and there would be a way for them to combine their power. 

Even if they couldn’t, Munakata felt it would still be _possible_ to defeat the King. With his magic and the Red Dragon’s strength, they would certainly pack a heavy punch. Still, they had a few weeks until the next full moon and with all the downtime, Munakata thought it would be a productive use of his free time to research.

Diving into the books he began to read. There was a great deal of information on different dragon lineage—how the clan leadership was passed on, leaders through the various years, etc.— and though this was fascinating, Munakata skimmed through pages and pages hoping to find the information he wanted. It was easy to lose himself in the research and the desire to read tidbits of dragon lore was tempting.

“Enjoying yourself?” A familiar murmur echoed through the room, breaking the mage of his concentration. He glanced up, seeing Suoh standing in the doorway. Munakata rubbed his eyes, pushing his glasses onto his head momentarily. What time was it? He hadn’t been keeping track of how long he’d been reading and looking through books. So far, he’d found nothing. 

“Actually yes, I am.” He readjusted his glasses on his nose and shut the book in front of him. “You’ve got quite the library; I’ve barely scratched the surface. Eventually I’ll have to come back and read some of the fiction you’ve got tucked away in here.” 

“You’ve been in here for hours,” Suoh sighed, leaning against the door frame. “Did ya’ wanna eat or somethin’?” he offered.

Munakata shook his head, leaning over the table to grab a new book. “I’m not very hungry and this is very enjoyable. It has been awhile since I’ve had the chance to dive into research like this.” 

“Never thought I’d hear someone say they _liked_ research,” Suoh chuckled. “But suit yourself.” Munakata’s gaze immediately turned back towards the book, not saying a word as he returned to his studies. Suoh pursed his lips, watching the mage hard at work. It was impressive, how quickly he seemed to get lost in the world of the book he had in front of him. Suoh cleared his throat and Munakata snapped his neck up to stare at the shifter once more. “Can I ask you somethin’?” Suoh muttered. 

With a smirk, Munakata nodded. “I’ll give you one. One annoying question. You are interrupting me after all, Suoh.” 

Rolling his eyes, Suoh stepped forward and folded his arms. “Why do you care about all this? Saving Anna and what not…”

“It’s like I said, no one deserves to be taken from their home. If the King kidnapped the girl, she should be returned to her rightful place,” he nodded. “And actually getting a chance to learn about a species I didn’t even know existed is rather thrilling, don’t you think?” Munakata smiled. 

Sighing, Suoh shrugged. “Guess so. Glad you’re enjoying yourself.” The shifter thought Munakata’s persistence was endearing.

“I am, very much so.” 

“Well, lemme know if you get hungry,” he said, rubbing his neck as turned to leave the large room. He flicked his wrist one time, a small wave Munakata didn’t see as his eyes were already glued back to the pages. 

The High Magus spent hours searching through books, getting distracted while reading of shifter history. It wasn’t until late that evening that he stumbled upon a small book labeled _Blood Oath_. It was smaller than the rest of the books—its small binding almost hidden between two larger books, but Munakata’s watchful eyes had thankfully noticed. Flipping the pages open he began to read. His eyes widened in excitement as he realized he had finally found exactly what he had been looking for. 

Humans and shifters did have a way of working together, though the more Munakata read the tiny book, the more complicated the instructions grew. It spoke of immortality—strong, but old, powerful magic which bound the human and shifter together. It spoke of sharing blood to strengthen their abilities. It was written complicatedly and it also mentioned how only a handful of shifters and humans had fully completed the blood oath ritual to become immortal—the deeper the bond, the more powerful the pair would be. The most famous pair were two men called Yatogami Kuroh and Isana Yashiro, who was the author of the text. There was a small map at the back of the book, explaining where the two resided by the edge of the wastelands. It implied the pair was the only immortal pair still around.

Munakata’s eyes darted about the page as he took in all the information. It all made sense; Iwafune had taken Anna from her home when she was a small child for a chance at immortality. The stronger the bond, the higher chance the ritual had of succeeding. If Anna loved and cared about the King as though he were her father, they could easily perform the ritual and be immortal together. But how the King had discovered this knowledge was beyond Munakata. This particular text didn't look to be very old, but humans and dragons hadn’t been in contact for decades. Unfortunately, nowhere in the text did it describe the ritual or how to perform it. 

Blinking, he sat back in the chair and ran his hands down his face. Perhaps Munakata could create a bond with Suoh, making them stronger against the King. It would give them a much higher chance of success, though he had no idea how to go about performing such old and specialized magic. If they could find these men, Yatogami Kuroh and Isana Yashiro, perhaps they could help. If these men were indeed immortal, it was highly possible they were still alive. If he and Suoh could find them, maybe they could help them perform the ritual and train. 

Jumping out of his seat, Munakata grabbed the book and dashed out the door. Already the sun had begun to set; he hadn’t realized how long he had been in there. It didn’t take him long to run up the hill to Suoh’s house, barging inside. Eyes snapping open, Suoh groaned as he sat up on the couch.

 “What the hell…” he muttered, rubbing his head. “Munakata, you could _walk_ in the house.” 

“Suoh!” he exclaimed placing the book on the table. “Have you heard of two men named Yatogami Kuroh and Isana Yashiro?” he asked. Raising an eyebrow, Suoh looked at Munakata, his face rather perplexed. “I take it you haven’t,” he sighed and sat in the chair directly across from the Red Dragon. “I found this and I need to read it more thoroughly, but it seems a human and a dragon— if they share a deep enough bond—can perform a blood oath ritual that allows them to bond together to become a more powerful duo. This bond has the capability to make both parties immortal. I think that is why the King stole Anna.” His speaking was hurried and filled with both nervous energy and excitement, though he paused when Suoh growled at the mention of the King. Taking a deep breath, he began again. “If we could find Yatogami Kuroh and Isana Yashiro, they might allow us to train with them. If they helped us perform the ritual, we could fight with combined power against the King!” 

Leaning forward, Suoh picked up the book and flipped through the pages quickly. It was easy to see he wasn't actually reading. “So if we take this oath, we could be immortal and bonded, making us more powerful?” he repeated slowly. 

“Exactly, though the text doesn’t say what the ritual entails or if bonding has any side effects,” Munakata explained.

“Could it?” Suoh asked and received a large shrug in response. 

“I do not know…” Munakata whispered. “We would have to find this immortal pair to find out. If they _are_ immortal and still alive, the book spoke of them being near the wastelands, north of here. We could travel there in a few days time.” 

Suoh ran his finger down the book’s spine while his amber eyes met Munakata’s determined purples. He tightened his lips and lay back on the couch, shutting his eyes. “You’re not going to let this go are you?” 

“How could we? The stronger we are the better. The King knows you have me, who knows what he’ll do to fight against us. Plus, the chance to learn such ancient magic—ahh, it’s amazing. If you’re smart Suoh, you’ll at least accompany me to attempt to find this pair.” 

Opening the book, the Red Dragon placed it over his eyes. “Damn mistake letting you go in that library.” 

Frowning, Munakata stepped forward and yanked the book off of his face, staring down straight into Suoh’s eyes. “Don’t you want her back? Don’t you want the power to fight against him? If we combine our powers, we might be able to. I’m willing to try this with you, for the sake of your Princess.” Groaning, Suoh turned to face the couch shutting his eyes.

“We’ll talk about leaving in the morning…” he muttered, keeping his eyes glued towards the back of the couch. He knew damn well that Munakata’s pleased smirk would be planted on his face and Suoh had no desire to have that be his last image before sleeping.

~~~

Fushimi’s feet dragged on the ground, kicking up mud. He was exhausted from only a few days of traveling. Thankfully, the trees blocked most of the sun out, making the temperature decently bearable for him. 

The tiny inns they had stayed in had uncomfortable beds and while Awashima slept on one side of the room, Fushimi still felt the room was overcrowded. He was desperate for personal space. They both did a good job of staying silent through most of the day, neither really having much to say. Awashima didn’t want to speak about the Captain and Fushimi definitely didn’t want to answer, so instead they walked together in silence. One time, Awashima had attempted to speak to Fushimi about his childhood, simply to spark conversation, but she immediately had been shut down and hadn’t tried again since. 

Fushimi had taken a map from the castle and currently was working through in his mind how they would handle the wastelands. There was a tunnel through the mountain, but as far as he knew, it hadn’t been touched decades. No one went through the mountain anymore, for no one wanted to end up on the other side in the wastelands. _He_ didn’t particularly want to end up there either, but Fushimi couldn’t see it any other possibilities. The dragon had come from the east and there weren’t many options for where he could reside. 

“About how long do you think it will take for us to reach the mountain, Fushimi?” Awashima asked finally, breaking the silence. She peered over his shoulder, glancing at the map he held tightly in his palm. 

“Mmm, I’m not sure,” he muttered. “I think we could reach the underpass in a few days.” 

“I see,” she hummed in response. Her un-asked question hung heavily in the air between them, and Fushimi could tell she wanted to know if he thought the Captain would be alive. Still, his answer was the same as before, so he was thankful she didn’t actually speak the words out loud. 

“I’m not sure where the wastelands begin once we’re out of the tunnel. Tsk, this map is incredibly unhelpful. Though I suppose it’s due to the fact that humans haven’t traveled out that far in decades. So happy to be the first ones,” Fushimi grumbled, rolling his eyes. 

“What if we’re wrong?” Awashima asked. “What if humans have been wrong for decades and on the other side of Homra Mountain, there is a beautiful paradise,” she sighed. 

“And here I thought you were a realist,” Fushimi scoffed, pushing past a clutter branches.

“I’m tired,” she mumbled. “I haven’t slept very well for the past few evenings and I know you haven’t either.” Awashima had tossed and turned just as much as Fushimi had, if not more. Munakata was the base of everything Scepter stood for. It was the most powerful magic guild in all of Shizume and Awashima knew how hard the man had worked to reach his High Magus status. No one was even close to being ready to take over for him. Fushimi was the most powerful mage, but he wasn’t fit to be a leader. If Munakata was actually dead, they would have a very difficult situation on their hands; one Awashima didn’t care to think about and from the way Fushimi was acting, she assumed he wasn’t in the mood to think about it either. 

Fushimi clicked his tongue in response. “That’s an understatement.” 

“Yes, I hear you toss and turn,” she whispered. “I know you pretend to not be worried, but…” Their eyes met, worry flicking across both of their gazes. No words were needed to express their concern.

“Let’s just keep moving. We’re never going to get anywhere if we keep dallying like this,” he muttered, continuing on the path.

~~~

“It shouldn’t take more than a few days to follow the edge of the wastelands up north,” Munakata explained. “At least that’s what I gathered from the map. You know this area better than me, so you can feel free to correct me if I’m wrong.” The blue robe draped over his shoulders as he slipped his arms through the sleeve. Reaching for his saber, he attached the sheath to his belt loop, letting it fall by his side. 

“Yeah. Not more than a few days,” Suoh muttered, slinging the small pack of food and supplies they had gathered up that morning over his shoulder.

“I’m shocked no one tried to find them before this,” Munakata whispered, his hand tracing over the path he had discovered on the tiny map. 

“No reason to,” Suoh shrugged. “We’re content here. They’re probably content where they are, if they’re alive…” 

“Your lack of thirst for knowledge disturbs me,” Munakata scoffed, stepping out of the house to begin their walk north. 

“Your need to talk all the time disturbs me,” Suoh groaned, shutting the door behind him as he followed after the mage. Before, he had been the one leading the way, but now that it was Munakata with the map, Suoh wasn’t too keen on following him.

Suoh couldn’t deny that he was _grateful_ to Munakata. The mage had switched his opinion of the King fairly quickly. Suoh was surprised actually, by how much the mage trusted him. Though Suoh had trusted the other quite fast as well. He had let Munakata heal him a mere day after being conscious with him. For all he knew, Munakata could’ve used a spell to kill him, but he hadn’t. Though he would never say it out loud, Suoh found Munakata’s efforts admirable.

Leaving the village behind, Munakata knew better than to ask any questions of Suoh. He was a smart man and he’d learned fast that Suoh wasn’t a talker. It was all the same to Munakata currently, since his mind was racing with plenty of new thoughts and ideas about what this ritual would entail. The book had spoken of sharing blood and how together, a human and a dragon could reach an immortal state if they shared a deep enough bond. It also mentioned humans with higher magical energy having a much better chance of successfully working with a dragon. He wondered what these things could mean. Perhaps they would have to slice open their fingers and touch their blood together, or worse—they’d have to drink each other’s blood, like some sort of vampiric creatures. Munakata’s eyes widened in horror just thinking of it. 

“You’re thinking about something weird,” Suoh muttered, walking next to the wide-eyed mage.

“What? No, I’m not!” Munakata said and stepped away from Suoh’s side, keeping his gaze aimed at the map. Suoh stayed fixated on the man. He really was very pretty. Even now, dressed in normal robes, Suoh couldn’t help but admire his handsome femininity. 

After a minute of decidedly staring at the map, his purple eyes flicked to Suoh, who was now no longer looking at him. The dragon’s horns curled to the sky proudly and his cloak had a ring of fur around the bulky collar. Still, even with all the clothes he was wearing, Munakata could see the dragon shifter was muscular and strong. 

“What are you thinking about then?” Suoh asked, his gaze still facing forward. “You had a strange look on your face.” 

“Ah,” Munakata mused softly. “I was wondering what exactly this pair would be like. If they’re immortal then they’ve been alive for quite sometime, yet they’ve stayed hidden. I wonder what they do with all their time,” he admitted. “I also can’t help but be a little anxious to meet such a powerful mage. If this book is correct, Isana Yashiro would know spells that have been lost to humans for years. It’s incredible really,” he smiled politely. Suoh simply nodded his head in return. 

For a few paces, all that was heard was the gentle crackle of the grass beneath their feet. In the distance, there were light caws of birds flying about through the air. Taking in a breath through his nose, Munakata let out a long sigh. “It’s nice to be out of the city. Shizume is nice, but this is peaceful.” 

“Yup, s’why we don’t want anything to do with you humans and your busy cities and boring politics,” Suoh scoffed. His hands were folded behind his head as he walked onwards. Munakata almost forget this was Suoh’s home. The dry smell of the wasteland not far away which permeated Munakata’s nose most likely didn’t phase the Red Dragon, nor did the fresh air or the light noises of the fauna in the area. “It’s peaceful here,” he shrugged. 

“Suoh, if the bonding spell isn’t something you want to do with me, I will understand. But I am going to continue to offer, even if it involves something bizarre. It’s important to rescue the Princess.” 

“Somethin’ bizarre?” Suoh asked, raising an eyebrow at the High Magus. “What exactly are you thinking we’re going to have to do?”

“I don’t know. The book discusses something about a blood oath—so it’s possible we might have to do something with our blood. Oaths like that are usually permanent ones, so if you don’t want to be stuck with me forever, it might be in your best interest to decline.” 

“And you’re okay with being stuck with me?” Suoh smirked. 

“I don’t know if ‘okay’ is the word I would use, but yes. If it is necessary, I will be happy to make that sacrifice.”

“Well, thank you for your sacrifice, oh generous mage,” Suoh scoffed sarcastically. 

Frowning, Munakata let out a long sigh. “You act offended, yet I know you do not wish to spend the rest of eternity with me.” 

“Would you talk this much?” 

“Probably even more,” he grinned, pressing his glasses up on his face. 

“Forget it, let’s turn back.” Suoh promptly turned his back as though he were about to head in the opposite direction. Grabbing his arm, Munakata grunted and shook his head.

 “It was all in jest,” he chuckled.

“I figured,” Suoh said, turning back around to continue on the path. “Let’s see what we have to do. You seem like a smart guy. I’ll trust your judgement,” he shrugged. Munakata felt his cheeks flush for a moment. He wasn’t quite sure why that had pleased him so much, but he was happy Suoh finally seemed to be willing to listen to him. 

“Look,” the shifter muttered. “I want to get Anna back no matter what. We’ve been looking for her for years and now that we finally know where she is—it has been a struggle going and failing to get her back. Pathetic really, heh,” he chuckled and rubbed the back of his neck. Rolling his head back, he grunted. “What I’m trying to say is, you’re strong and I’m strong and since you’re willing to work with me, we can be strong together. If you think this is a way for us to be even stronger, then so be it,” he admitted.

Staring at Suoh, Munakata nodded slowly. They were the most words the Red Dragon had spoken at one time since Munakata had known him. The mage was surprised, Suoh seemed to be more willing than he had originally expected. 

“Well,” he spoke finally. “The first thing we have to do is find Yatogami Kuroh and Isana Yashiro, if we can’t do that all this might be moot,” he said, staring at the map intently. He prayed they were still alive and willing to help them. 

~~~

Hirasaka Douhan had always prided herself on being invisible. It was a talent she had had as a young child. During her early years when she had begun to learn magic, many of the children treated her as invisible and she was happy to consider herself as such. She much preferred to be away from them anyway.

The older she grew and the more practice she had, she became an expert at this stealth magic. She could hide wherever she wanted, and people would struggle to find her for hours. Being able to fool people in such a way, it gave her a sense of talent. She was good at hiding and disappearing, and that was not something everyone could say. When she realized people would pay her to be invisible, she knew she had found the right career.

She had been thrilled when the King had come to her, desperate for help. There was no one else he claimed, who could hide as well as Hirasaka—therefore he needed her for an incredibly special mission. Deep down she knew it was wrong, exploiting her power in such a way. She knew taking Anna from her true home would have consequences, but she was a hunter and Anna was her ultimate prey. 

The little dragon girl had practically been unprotected, the dragons had not been expecting any sort of fight. Hirasaka had snuck in and snuck out, completely undetected. But there was something about that tiny baby—Hirasaka had a small attachment to her. She had been her first true accomplishment; the first time a quest had mattered far more to someone else than herself. The baby hadn’t cried at all on the way back to the castle. 

At the time, she hadn’t known much of the King’s true goal. She knew she was going to be paid a hefty sum for her work, though just being successful was reward enough. She wondered if he wanted the girl for his own or if he simply wanted to do research on dragon shifters. She hadn’t even been aware of the existence of such creatures until he mentioned it to be the case. Hirasaka didn’t care much about dragon shifters, but she did care for the little girl she had taken. She asked the King to let her stay in his service, wanting to continue to protect the young girl and make a nice fee while she was at it. Since she had done such an amazing job at kidnapping her, the King had happily agreed, making her Anna’s knight in the shadows. 

Anna didn’t know Hirasaka, but the knight preferred it that way. She had always been invisible and it seemed her best work was always done when she was unseen. She loved Anna though/ She cared for her deeply and wanted to make sure she was the happiest she could be and Hirasaka could tell she was happiest by the King’s side.

The King and Hirasaka had become close over the years and she knew why he did what he did, but she also saw the way he treated Anna as though she were truly his own daughter. The King was a good man, strange, but good and she didn’t want to let him or Anna down. She had to protect their safety—Anna’s safety. _His_ safety. 

She knew how important this new assignment was, it had been a long while since the King had called upon Hirasaka for such a trying task, but she was happy to return to the dragon village in an attempt to discover what they were doing. Anything to keep Anna among her rightful family, though Hirasaka masked her true intentions by her desire for money.

Following the two guild members had been anything but interesting. The two bickered as though they were young schoolchildren, it seemed the dark-haired boy would make dry snarky comments to the woman who was barely able to put up with the various insults he threw at her. There were the occasional moments between the two where they were vulnerable and worried, mostly they would talk around the true subject neither wanted to bring up; whether or not their Captain was still alive. 

Hirasaka had a feeling the mage was alive. From what she had witnessed, dragons shifters were a peaceful people and often spent time relaxing or resting—there had been no guards or anyone on duty when she had taken Anna all those years ago.

However, despite all their arguing, the mages were still on the right track, heading directly towards the tunnel that lead to the other side of Homra Mountain. Most people steered clear of the mountain, due to the fact it was believed to lead only to wastelands. That wasn’t a lie, but before the wastelands there were a collection of small dragon shifter villages where the creatures mostly kept to themselves. 

The tunnels weren’t all that difficult to get through and Hirasaka was considering jumping ahead of them to see what the dragon shifters and the High Magus were up to. She sighed, watching the two walk through the forest from atop a high tree. The King had instructed her to stay and watch these two, which meant she had to follow them until they either made it to the village or turned back. If they did the latter, she was to continue on to the dragon shifter village and see what Munakata was planning

She had considered interfering a few times, wanting to sway the two guild members from the path, but that wasn’t her job. Her job was to track them and stay invisible, just as she always had, so she wouldn’t break that pact. 

She felt strange being away from the King and Anna, since it had been so long, but she also had missed tracking. Even if tracking these two was one of the easiest jobs she’d had in her life.

“Idiots,” she muttered, as she watched them both trudge along. She could’ve made it to the dragon village and back by the time these two even got there one time. She knew that wasn’t fair since she had actually been there before. Sighing, she continued to follow them silently, praying they’d actually make it to the village in just a few days time.

~~~

It took them three days to find the cabin tucked away in the middle of the woods. Munakata kept commenting about how he wasn’t sure how anyone could choose to live in such a place—the smell near the wastelands was so rancid. Suoh wouldn’t usually respond, but instead roll his eyes and walk forward, ignoring the mage. It didn’t bother the dragon shifter at all, since he had grown up and lived by the wastelands his whole life. It was an ever present smell that permeated his nose all the time; he was simply used to it by now. 

It was Suoh who stopped short, when they came to the tiny clearing in the middle of the woods. The cabin was hidden behind a few trees, just beyond the clearing. Suoh not only caught a quick glimpse of it, but he could smell the scent of burning as he noted a tiny cloud of smoke trailing towards the sky from the chimney.

Walking next to him, Munakata stopped to stare at the dragon shifter. “Why did you stop?” he asked quietly, wondering if the dragon had seen something he hadn’t. 

“We’re here,” he stated flatly. 

“Oya? Are we?” Munakata asked, glancing around. It was possible Suoh had smelt something Munakata had missed. From observations alone, Munakata could tell the shifters had much stronger noses than humans. 

“Yeah,” he gestured to the small cabin in the distance. “See it?” 

“O-Oh…” Munakata muttered. “Hm.” He stopped, looking around the area. Would it be safe to just walk up to their home? They weren’t expecting visitors, Munakata assumed, so perhaps they would think he and Suoh were hostile.

“What’s wrong?” Suoh asked, seeing the perplexed look on Munakata’s face.

“I’m trying to decide how to approach this situation. We don’t want them to think we’re attacking, and on top of that we want to make sure they actually do talk to us…” As Munakata rambled, Suoh continued walking towards the house, not listening to whatever it was the mage was debating out loud. He didn’t have time to wait for the other to plot out some intricate plan, they were here and it had taken quite a few days to arrive and frankly, Suoh wanted to get a good night sleep. 

Glancing around to see Suoh walking away from him, Munakata blinked quickly, running after him. “Suoh!” he hissed. “Suoh, what are you doing!? You cannot just waltz up to their house without thinking through how they might react!” he said, lunging forward to grab the dragon shifter’s arm. 

Suoh gently pulled his arm from Munakata’s grasp. “S’fine. You think too much,” he grunted, stepping towards the house. Leaning his head back with a groan, Munakata began to follow after him. As they grew closer to the home, Munakata let out a soft gasp. The large magical aura he felt was absolutely incredible, never had he felt something so powerful before. 

“Suoh, wait,” he hissed as the Red Dragon stepped up to their front door and knocked. So much for giving him a warning. Munakata stood, frozen as he waited for a response. Nothing. Knocking again, Suoh leaned over to peer inside one of the windows, only to find the curtains covered any sort of view of the inside of the house. 

“Not home,” Suoh muttered, turning around to face the mage. Were they avoiding them? Munakata couldn’t tell, the magical aura was so strong they had to be here somewhere. 

A loud bang was heard next to them and both men turned their heads to face a tall, dark-haired male. He had long dark horns, which shot straight up towards the sky and swirling black marks under his eyes; a shifter. His hand hovered above the sword handle by his side and his glare was strong. “Who goes there?” his deep voice muttered, ready to strike at any sign of hostility. Flicking his gaze towards Suoh, Munakata stepped forward, holding his hands up.

 “We’re not not here to fight. We are looking for Yatogami Kuroh and Isana Yashiro are you one of them?” he inquired slowly. 

The dark-haired male looked between both of them and muttered. “Why do you want to know? Why do you wish to speak to me and my master?” Munakata sighed, he had known the two men would be surprised by visitors. Stepping down off of the steps, Suoh stood in front of Munakata, angrily glaring at the other dragon. 

“Su-Suoh…” he whispered. He could handle and take care of himself just fine, but the gesture surprised him.

“Oh! Visitors?” came a higher pitched voice. A silver-haired male stood next to Kuroh, holding a large batch of wood. Munakata could feel the immense amount of power emanating from the man—the mage, he assumed. “Kuroh! You should be friendly to these people. We haven’t talked to others in years!” he smiled cheerfully. 

“S-Shiro! There’s a reason for that,” the shifter hissed. “And we don’t know why they’re here! What if they tried to kill you?” he scoffed. 

“Oh come on now, do they look hostile? That mage has his arms up like we’ve arrested him or something,” he chuckled and leaned over to kiss the shifter’s cheek. “You’re just itching for a fight because it’s been years,” he teased, nudging the dark-haired male. 

“We really aren’t here for a fight. We mostly had a few questions and were looking for your help…” Munakata began slowly. Once again, he glanced towards Suoh who hadn’t moved a muscle. Munakata was thankful, as he was the more intimidating looking of the two of them.

“Mmm. I see.” The man who Munakata assumed was named Shiro, stepped towards him, smiling wide. “Let me guess. You are a mage,” he said, gesturing to Munakata. “And you are a dragon shifter,” he said, turning to Suoh. “And you’ve somehow stumbled upon my text, the one about the dragon shifter and human bond and you’re looking to learn more about it and potentially bond yourselves,” Shiro stated quickly, the cheerful look still present on his face. 

“Well,” Munakata began after a beat. “You’re correct,” he said, holding up the book. 

“Wonderful! I left that text behind for a reason!” he smiled. “Of course, I didn’t think it would take so long for a pair to come to find me, but well, it certainly is better than nothing! I hear humans forgot of the existence of dragons,” he pouted a bit. 

“Well I wouldn’t say we forgot, but they were gone for quite a few decades. It also doesn’t help that you left the book with dragon shifters who never clean on their library,” he smirked, glancing towards Suoh. The Red Dragon shifted his weight and folded his arms in a huff, a small puff of smoke escaping from his nostrils. 

“Mmm, well that would be problematic I guess,” Shiro sighed. “Then again, I haven’t seen a human on this side of the mountain in a long while! So it didn’t matter much. I wanted someone intelligent to find and decipher my text anyway, so I can only assume you’ve succeeded if you found our place.” 

“You had it coded?” Munakata asked. “I thought it was pretty straight forward.” Shiro’s eyes widened and he let out a long laugh.

“It has been decades so maybe it wasn’t as hard as I thought,” he sighed, looking dejected. “But please, let’s go inside and we can discuss why you’re here.” His tone shifted, growing much more serious. “I can see you both have a frantic look in your eyes.” It was difficult for Munakata to believe Suoh looked frantic about anything, but he thought Shiro maybe had the ability to see past Suoh’s stoic facade. Stepping by them, Kuroh glared at both. It was obvious he was still quite wary of them, though Munakata didn’t blame him. It had been a long time since either of them had interacted with other living creatures. 

“He talks more than you,” Suoh mumbled, following Kuroh towards the house.

The inside of the cabin was cosy, the fire gently flickering in the fireplace. The setting arrangement was small, only one long couch and two small chairs which surrounded a long table. There didn’t seem to be many rooms, as far as Munakata could see, but it was hard to see around any of the corners and he didn’t want to intrude on their personal space. Shiro took a seat on the couch, Kuroh sitting directly next to him, obviously ready to protect the mage if need be. 

 Taking a seat in one of the chairs, Munakata was surprised when Suoh stood next to him, as opposed to sitting in the other free chair. He almost gestured to the empty seat, but something about the way Suoh stood made Munakata think he would refuse to sit. 

“Well, we’ve been terribly rude,” Munakata sighed. “My name is Munakata Reisi. I am a High Magus in Shizume City, my speciality is ice magic.” He glanced up at Suoh, waiting for him to follow with his own introduction. 

The shifter folded his arms and leaned back against the wall. “Suoh Mikoto,” he muttered out his name. “Shifter.” 

“Hello!” Shiro smiled. “I’m Isana Yashiro, but you can call me Shiro. I’m a mage specializing in light magic, and this is Yatogami Kuroh, my partner and dragon shifter.” 

Leaning forward, Munakata placed the book on the table. “Tell me, is it true you’re immortal?” From the way Shiro had spoken, Munakata could only assume this was the case, still he wanted to hear it from the light mage’s mouth directly. 

Frowning, Shiro folded his hands over his knee. “We are immortal. However, I should urge you both—if you are expecting to gain immortality by bonding it isn’t a guarantee, nor should that be a reason for wanting to bond with each other,” he said, glancing towards Kuroh.

Grunting, Suoh closed his eyes. “S’not why,” he mumbled. 

“Ah, we aren’t hoping to gain immortality. I don’t mean to be disrespectful, but I am unaware of how long you’ve been out of touch with the world. Shifters are a dying species.” With those words, Kuroh’s eyes moved up to Suoh, flickering with concern. Munakata continue to explain what had happened. He spoke about Anna being taken and how he’d been originally hired to protect her from Suoh. But now he had been made aware of the truth and he wanted to lend his power to help rescue her. “I know together we would be powerful without the bond,” he said, glancing up to Suoh, “but it was something we thought perhaps we could try.” 

Smiling, Shiro nodded along with the story. “It seems you have a truly noble cause,” he grinned. “Selfless actually. And you are correct, you would be much stronger with the bond than without,” he nodded. “Of course, your strength comes from how close the two of you are but if you spend some time training here, we can work with you to strengthen the bond. If you choose to do it. I assume you’re looking for more information, since my text doesn’t really go into much detail,” he chuckled softly. 

“Yes, that would definitely be helpful. I know you mention a blood oath but you didn’t explain what that meant,” Munakata replied. 

Shiro nodded. “Yes. There’s a ritual in which you will share your magical energy with each other. Once that is completed and is successful, you will each give a drop of blood and from then on if the shifter drinks blood from his mage, he can shift into a dragon at will. You wouldn’t have to wait for the full moon.” 

“A-Ah,” Munakata said and sat back. Sharing magical energy was what he had expected, but the blood oath was much different. If Suoh drank from him, he could shift at will, which would actually be rather helpful. However, just the idea of losing blood in such a way made him feel a bit queasy. Suoh hadn’t moved or made any reaction to what Shiro had spoke about. 

As if he had noticed the look on his face, Kuroh snorted. “It’s not very much,” he said. “You get used to it fast.” 

“Mhm,” Shiro nodded and reached forward, taking Kuroh’s hand to lace their fingers together. “The bond is very special. So you’ll find after the first few times you don’t mind. Plus having a dragon is actually very useful,” he smiled, leaning his head on Kuroh’s shoulder. “Though—” he blushed quickly, pulling back. “J-Just because you have a bond, doesn’t mean you end up like _that_. Plenty of our past comrades were nothing more than friends,” he said quickly. Munakata couldn’t help the blush which quickly rose to his cheeks. He had had a few moments where he was attracted to Suoh, simply because the man was strong and attractive physically but that did not mean he had any sort of deep feelings for the shifter. 

“Ah, I see,” Munakata muttered, glancing up at Suoh who still had not moved a muscle. 

“However, it is an unbreakable bond. The only way to break it is if one of you dies and the other does not. Otherwise it is a bond you will have for the rest of both your lives. If your bond grows deep enough, you will stop aging and become immortal,” Shiro explained. “It is a lot to think about.”

“Indeed,” Munakata agreed softly.

“The ritual doesn’t take all that long, but you should be well-rested for it. No matter what, you should stay for the night and discuss with each other if it is something you want to try. If you decide to stay afterwards, Kuroh and I would be happy to help you train for a bit,” he nodded happily. “There’s a small barn out back and you both could sleep there. But for now—” he stood up with a stretch. “How about we eat some dinner? Kuroh is an amazing chef and I’m starving!” he chuckled, practically twirling to the kitchen, Kuroh following after him. 

“They seem carefree,” Suoh muttered, glancing down at Munakata.

“I guess when you’ve been alive for so long it seems you would have to be, otherwise the stress would be rather overwhelming.” Smiling, he stood up. “Plus, I am rather hungry, so food it is.” 

~~~

After dinner, Kuroh led Munakata and Suoh out back to where the barn was. It was mostly empty, though it stored a great deal of tools for farming and hunting. In the back corner was a large pile of hay where Kuroh suggested they sleep. Handing them a few extra blankets, he apologized for lack of beds and explained they hadn’t been expecting guests. Munakata quickly brushed off his apology, assuring him they would be fine there. Kuroh and Shiro had lived alone for so long, Munakata didn’t expect them to have extra space for no reason.

Once Kuroh was gone, Munakata let out a long sigh and slipped off his blue robe, folding it up on the ground next to the hay. Suoh didn’t change at all and flopped down onto the soft yellow grass, letting out a grunt. “G’night,” he said. 

“Wait a moment Suoh. You’re just going to go to bed? You don’t want to discuss anything they said today?” he asked. 

“What’s there to discuss?” he asked, leaning on his side to stare at the mage. “Either we do it or we don’t. If you’re fine with it, I’m fine with it. If you’re not fine with it, then we can leave,” he shrugged. 

“So you have no opinion one way or another?” Munakata huffed. “This is an unbreakable bond we could be sharing for an eternity.” 

“You said earlier you didn’t care what it was and that you wanted to do it. I thought that was your stance,” Suoh said quietly. 

“Well it is. I am fine with doing it, but you realize what a commitment this is,” he whispered. 

Sighing, Suoh tucked his arms behind his head and faced his gaze up to the ceiling of the barn. “I guess I don’t think of it like that. _You_ gotta sit around and overthink things. I just do,” he said. 

“Rushing into something like this—You can’t _not_ think it through,” he muttered, rolling onto his side, staring at the shifter. 

“I dunno. It’s important to me to get Anna back and if this is the best way to do so, then yeah. I wanna do it.” 

“And what about after? What do we do once we get her back?” Munakata asked, rolling back onto his back. 

“We’ll figure it out once we get there. We don’t have to plan out every little thing,” he grunted, shutting his eyes again. Munakata sighed. They really were such opposites. Would spending the rest of his life connected to this dragon shifter do any good? He supposed they could work together on other quests, if Suoh was willing to join up with him. Or perhaps they could go separate ways. Shiro never said they had to stay together. How Suoh could disregard the future was baffling to the mage.

“Well, sleeping on it at least is smart,” he muttered. There was a long silence as Munakata shut his eyes, thinking back on the day. There were so many times when Suoh had stayed by his side and Munakata certainly hadn’t minded. But he did have the capability to protect himself. “And Suoh, you realize you don’t have to protect me, correct?” he asked, breaking the silence once more. “Why did you stand in front of me when Kuroh walked up?” he asked softly.

“I dunno. Wanted to protect you. You’re smart, but you’re also kinda an idiot,” Suoh sighed.

“Ah?!” Munakata said, jolting up to stare at the other. “I’ll have you know I am a very intelligent individual. At least I don’t rush into things and—” Munakata was abruptly interrupted by Suoh lips pressed against his own. His eyes widened and his body froze, feeling his lips was unexpected to say the least. Why…why was Suoh kissing him!? Still, Munakata didn’t push him away, his heart fluttered in his chest and his face heated up. Pulling back, his purple hues met Suoh’s tired amber eyes. “S-Suoh….” he whispered, his throat dry.

“Munakata. Shut up. I wanna sleep,” he grunted, rubbing his neck. Frowning, Munakata folded his arms and glared at the shifter. “And I dunno. You got that stupid pretty look. My instincts automatically wanna protect ya’,” he muttered. Slowly Munakata lowered his arms, feeling less hostile. While he wasn’t particularly happy about Suoh trying to get him to shut up, he couldn’t help but think Suoh looked sweet. His words had been genuine and his cheeks were slightly flushed. 

Leaning forward, Munakata’s hand cupped at Suoh’s cheek, pressing their lips together once more. He held the kiss there longer this time, but pulled back when he felt a shiver roll through his spine. “Well, thank you. I can protect myself, but what you said was nice—well, nice for you,” he mumbled. 

Suoh’s face was flushed as he shrugged. “…Yeah…yeah.” He lay back down. 

“Good night Suoh,” he whispered, laying back down as well. 

 “G’night…” Came a muffled reply. Munakata still wanted to sleep on it, but perhaps being bonded to Suoh wouldn’t be as bad as he originally worried.

~~~

“We have to go in there,” Fushimi groaned, rolling his eyes at the dark cavern. 

“Yes,” Awashima said, taking a large breath of air in, as though her lungs were puffing out of her chest. “We have to see if the Captain is on the other side.” 

“He’s not going to be directly on the other side,” Fushimi muttered, folding his arms. Flaring her nostrils, Awashima rubbed her forehead. 

“I’m well aware the Captain won’t be _directly_ on the other side. I don’t expect him to be waiting there, waving like an idiot, asking what took us so long,” she retorted snappily. A roll of her eyes was indicative of how frustrated she was. She had spent so much time with Fushimi in the past few days and while she was thankful the man had come with her to look for the Captain, he was beginning to grow on her every nerve. Couldn’t he be agreeable, just this once? 

Sighing, Fushimi could tell Awashima was getting sick of him, not that he really cared. If she hated him by the end of the trip, so be it. Their ultimate goal was to get the Captain back and Fushimi would do whatever he could to make sure they all made it back to the guild alive. “Right. Well let’s get it over with,” he muttered. Opening his palm, he collected magical energy into a bright ball and let it float in front of him, lighting the way into the cavern. 

Stepping inside, Fushimi immediately covered his face, scoffing at the disgusting smell which wafted into his nose. “Tsk, this is disgusting. It smells like wet mold!” he snapped under his breath. As Awashima followed him inside, she coughed, choking on the rancid smell as well.

“Ugh…” she whimpered quietly. “You’re right, it’s horrid.” With a flick of his hand, Fushimi sent the light soaring around the cavern, looking for some kind of clue as to what could be causing the smell. Strange scratching noises echoed in his ears as he tried to look around. “What is that?” Awashima whispered, stepping closer to him. 

Glancing back at her, Fushimi shrugged. “I’m not sure,” he whispered. “Humans haven’t used this path in years, so I guess it could be anything,” he muttered, his blue eyes following the orb of light. “Ready your sword, it’s possible we could run into something.” Making the orb bigger, Fushimi stepped forward, following the path. Lowering his hand, he took a deep breath in through his mouth, desperately trying to not breath through his nose. 

“Alright. Hopefully we won’t,” she replied, her grip tightening around the handle of her sword.

The scratching grew louder the deeper they continued into the cave. Fushimi was tempted to dim the light, but he didn’t want to lose sight of the path. The noises seemed to be growing more frequent and from what Fushimi could tell, the creatures, or whatever they were, were drawn towards the energy pulsating from the magic in the orb. He pulled the orb closer to him, hoping to shield some of the light with his body.

“Something’s coming,” he whispered softly. Dipping his hand into his pocket, he pulled out a dagger and pushed the light forward. Swiftly, he tossed the dagger directly between the eyes of a giant rat-like being. The creature stopped, dead in it’s tracks, but the noise continued to grow louder and louder. “C’mon!” he yelled dashing forward, yanking the small knife from the creature’s head. 

 Awashima followed directly after Fushimi. “What was that thing?” she hissed, glancing behind them, nervous the creatures would sneak up on them.

“I don’t know. It was some kind of a giant rat,” he panted, placing the light closer to the ground making it easier to see their feet. 

More of the creatures came scurrying down from a small corridor in the darkness. Tossing a few knives towards them Fushimi, held the light and tried to illuminate the space. Awashima drew her sword and slashed at two of the giant rats leaping towards Fushimi’s light. 

The two mages panted heavily, wary of any other attacks that would be coming their way. Swallowing, Fushimi moved quicker now that they had cleared the creatures blocking their way. 

“They were disgusting…” Awashima mused, wrinkling her nose.

“I don’t think that was the last of them,” he mumbled. “It also explains why it smells so terrible in here. I’m sure those things have multiplied over the years—they’re probably not used to anyone disturbing their home.”

“How much longer until we get to the other side?” Awashima asked as they both rest against the cavern wall to catch their breath in a quieter area. 

“I haven’t got a clue,” Fushimi admitted. “At this point, I’m hoping we make it to other side alive,” he whispered. 

The two walked for what seemed like hours, though without the sun, Fushimi had no real idea of what time it actually was. Thankfully, whatever they had killed off of the rats had seemed to scare the others away. 

They continued down a path, appearing to head deeper into the mountain and silently, Fushimi hoped they hadn’t taken a wrong turn in the mess; he couldn’t imagine getting trapped down here. Though right as Fushimi was about to suggest turning around, the path began to curve, heading upwards yet again. 

But this time it seemed like weren’t alone. The loud squeaking and scratching returned, a distant echo in the large cavern. “Tsk,” Fushimi scoffed. “More damn rats. And here I thought we were close to getting out,” he muttered, pulling a dagger from his clothes. 

“I’m not concerned,” Awashima smirked, pulling her sword from it’s sheath. “We took them out once we can do it again. Plus we’re heading back up. Don’t worry Captain, we’re going to make it,” she smiled with determination. As the rats headed their way, the two mages readied for battle.

~~~

When Munakata awoke the next morning, Suoh had already awoken and left. He sat up slowly, surprised at how well he had slept on the pile of hay. Perhaps it was simply more comfortable than sleeping on the ground as he had been for the past few nights. 

Touching his fingertips to his lips, he could feel the gentle tingle from where they had shared a kiss the prior night. Sighing, he stood up and stretched. He wasn’t sure why the kiss had happened, but he also wasn’t particularly bothered by it. It had been a nice gesture. Intimate but nice.

Making his way out of the barn, he walked towards the cabin and knocked on the back door. 

“Good morning, Munakata!” Shiro smiled cheerfully, letting him into the house. In the kitchen, Suoh stood next to Kuroh, helping him prepare the morning meal. 

“Ah—good morning,” he muttered, stepping around the silver-haired mage and into the kitchen.

“They’re almost done with breakfast. After we eat you can let us know what you decided. I assume you and Suoh discussed things?” he asked softly. The two mages walked into the living room. 

“Mmm, yes. Discussed,” Munakata sighed, taking a seat in one of the chairs. “Suoh isn’t much of a talker…” he admitted. He had hoped they’d have some time this morning to ‘discuss’ things, but what Suoh had said last evening appeared to be the truth now too. If Munakata said yes, so would Suoh and if he said no, Suoh wasn’t going to complain. 

Shiro chuckled. “Is that so? I had _no_ idea,” he teased, sitting across from him on the couch. Kuroh and Suoh both entered the room. Carrying plates of eggs and bacon, they placed them on the center table. 

“Can I ask you some clarification questions?” Munakata asked, sitting forward to take some of the food on his plate. 

“Of course,” Shiro smiled. “I’m happy to answer any questions you may have.” Grinning, he grabbed a large portion of the food, at which Kuroh frowned. Still, the silver-haired mage sat back not returning any of the food to the center plate. He shoved a large bite into his mouth; he obviously hadn’t been kidding when he said he loved the shifter’s cooking. 

“You said the bond is unbreakable, but I wondered—are you capable of being apart? Are there any consequences to it besides Suoh needing my blood to transform?” 

“Mmm,” Shiro mumbled, still chewing the large mouthful of food. 

“Chew first, then speak,” Kuroh sighed. “We’ve never been apart for a long period of time and neither had any of the other shifter and mage duos we knew,” he admitted. “So unfortunately we can’t answer that question fully.” 

“Mmm, I see,” Munakata hummed. 

“As far as side effects go,” Shiro said, taking in a large breath of air after swallowing. “Occasionally you will share emotions or pain. So if one of you experiences a strong emotion, the other will most likely feel it,” he nodded. 

“That most likely won’t be much of a problem then,” Munakata scoffed, glancing up at Suoh. Rolling his eyes, the Red Dragon let out a grunt. Shiro chuckled and leaned against Kuroh, sighing happily from the food he had eaten.

“Well I will admit, no matter what you may think about each other, you both are living creatures with emotions. Whether you show them or not,” Shiro said. 

Munakata sighed. He wished Suoh had given him more of an opinion. Right now the entire decision seemed to be weighing on his choice. He was an intelligent man and he believed in his ability to make informed decisions, but it made him nervous. A lifetime commitment to this man he barely knew, and while he had warmed up to Suoh, it worried him they wouldn’t mesh well down the line. He had made a promise to Suoh—a declaration actually—that he would help him get Anna back. After fighting him, injuring him, and stopping him from doing the right thing in the first place, Munakata felt he owed him this. Plus, the idea of learning such ancient magic did thrill him. Perhaps this could be the beginning for humans and dragon shifters to rekindle their own societal bonds. 

“We would like to bond,” he said finally, breaking the silence in the room. Suoh glanced down at him and nodded once, agreeing with the High Magus. 

“Wonderful! Kuroh and I will set up the spell circle and we can get you started,” he smiled, jumping up off the couch. Picking up the book they had left on the table last evening, Shiro stepped out of the house, Kuroh following directly behind them. 

Flicking his amber eyes down towards the mage, the Red Dragon let out a sigh and knelt next to Munakata. “You sure?” he asked softly. Surprise appeared on the mage’s features, not expecting Suoh to check on his feelings.

“Are _you_?” he retorted softly. “I’ve mentioned my feelings many times. You have not,” he said.

The shifter scoffed and rubbed his neck. “I already told ya’ I’d be fine with whatever you decided. I don’t want you doing this because you feel you have to or anything,” he said quietly. 

“I don’t. I don’t think I have to,” he replied. “I want to help you. I said it back in the village and I’m saying it again. I want to be a support to you. This way we can perhaps strength a bond between our species. Humans could work with shifters and shifters might not be so wary of humans,” he continued. 

“How about we figure out this problem first and then we can try fixing larger problems?” Suoh chuckled. “You’re nervous, stop thinking about the rest of the world and think about yourself,” he stated. 

“Of course I’m nervous. It’s ancient magic, there are so many things that could go wrong. Our magic could be incompatible or…” he trailed off as Suoh’s hand rest on top of his head. 

“Stop. These two idiots obviously know what they’re doing.” Of course, Munakata didn’t think Suoh calling them idiots was very reassuring, but it was nice to see the dragon shifter attempt to comfort him. “And it’s not as though you’ll be alone or anything,” he muttered, standing back up. A blush rose to Munakata’s cheeks, the two small kisses they had shared last night popping into his mind.

“I know,” he whispered. “Thank you.” 

~~~

It took Shiro and Kuroh about an hour to create the magic circle in the main field by their cabin, but they were ready for the ritual by that afternoon. It wasn’t large, but it was intricate; many layers of ancient text in both human and shifter languages which Munakata could only assume were long since dead. Stepping into the field, Munakata stood next to Suoh, waiting for Shiro’s instructions. This was their last chance to back out and though Munakata’s heart throbbed in his chest, he knew he wouldn’t. Suoh had been surprisingly supportive in the past few days—in his own way. But Munakata was beginning to wonder if they could, at the very least, become good friends over time.

“I will walk you through everything,” Shiro began. “First, you’ll share your magical energy, which for Suoh may be a bit painful. Normally, shifters only have access to their magic around the full moon, which is why they can shift then. However this spell rips the suppressed magical energy from your body. Munakata, your magic is far more accessible, so it probably won’t be as problematic for you. An orb of light will appear in the middle—this is your combined magic. From there, you will both cut into your middle fingers and place a droplet of blood on the orb. Once that is done the orb will split in two and you’ll push the the orbs back into your bodies. If either of your feel tired or weak afterwards, that’s normal. The magical energy can be a bit overwhelming,” he chuckled. “The two of you can relax for the rest of the day. Tomorrow we can show you the many different ways to use the bond effectively,” he nodded. “Do you understand? I will walk you through it during the ritual, but it’s always good to know what is to come I think,” he said. “You can step into the circle when you both feel ready.” 

Munakata nodded, taking in all the information. It wasn’t a very complicated ritual, but it would be quite draining. Any spell that ripped magical energy from a being was usually considered forbidden, but bonding spells were often an exception. He’d heard ripping energy was quite the painful process, but Munakata was accustomed to using large quantities of magic all at once. Suoh, however, he was a bit concerned about. Yet the Red Dragon stepped into the circle immediately without any hesitation. Munakata was impressed; it was possible he had a very high tolerance for pain, or perhaps Suoh was more concerned with getting the damn thing over with. They’d been talking about it for days now and Munakata was ready to move on from it as well.

Munakata stepped directly across from him, staring into Suoh’s amber eyes. His cheeks flushed, thinking this was more intimate than a wedding ceremony, since they weren’t going to be able to separate their magic after it. Pursing his lips, he turned to Shiro. “Ready,” he said sharply, Suoh nodding along with him. 

As Shiro began to chant, the circle lit up, glowing around their feet. It was a language Munakata had never heard before and already he could feel the magic prickling on his skin; it was an electric feeling. As all the magical energy in his body crept into his chest, he gasped, lurching forward slightly from the mass quantities of energy beginning to weigh him down. Glancing at Suoh, the shifter stood, mostly unmoving. However Munakata could see the slight twitching in his furrowed brow. His eyes were closed and his lip trembled subtly, clearly holding back showing any sort of pain. 

Shiro’s chanting sped up and Munakata took a deep breath, feeling the energy slowly seep from his body. It formed a light blue orb in front of his chest. He panted heavily, pain shooting down his extremities, as the weight slowly lifted from his body. 

“Ngh,” came a soft grunt from Suoh as the same seemed to be happening to him. Munakata could see the sweat rolling down the side of his face. The shifter had his teeth clenched, panting heavily, as the small red orb expelled from his own chest moving to the center with Munakata’s blue. The colors mixed together, creating a soft purple orb in the center and Munakata was so thankful the magical orbs hadn’t rejected one another even while being opposites.

Munakata sighed with relief as the orb floated before them—they hadn’t failed. Exhaustion swept over his body, feeling weak without the normal weight of his magic. Pulling out the small knife, Suoh sliced his finger open, before handing the tool to Munakata who did the same. Both held their fingers over the orb and small droplets of blood landed on the magical energy, creating a soft spark. For a moment, the orb hovered between them, but as Shiro began to chant softly again, the sphere broke into two and floated around both of them. The orbs swirled around their bodies until the small purple lights stood in front of their chests, pressing back into their bodies. Slowly the light disappeared into their chests as Shiro stopped chanting, completing the ritual. 

Munakata shut his eyes, feeling the weight flow through his body once more. His magical energy felt hotter now, mingled with the flame magic from the Red Dragon. Opening his eyes, he felt the heat prickling on his skin. “H-Hot…” he grumbled, falling to his knees. Panting heavily, he waited for the heat to subside, hoping his own ice magic would cool his body down. 

Suoh stumbled backwards and slowly sank to the ground, sitting for a moment. His body shivered a few times, taking in the colder magic. Closing one eye, Suoh chuckled softly. “You okay, Munakata?” he teased. 

“F-Fine—just fine. Your magic is so hot,” he scoffed. “I should’ve expected it, you being a fire dragon and all,” he panted. “Is my magic freezing you?” 

“Eh, it’s not that…bad,” he smirked, still visibly shaking. 

With a laugh, Shiro approached Munakata and helped him stand up. “It might take you a teensy bit of time to grow used to the amount of magical energy inside of you. It will even out probably by the evening.” Kuroh rushed to Suoh’s side, helping him stand. The two helped the weakened men walk back towards the barn.

“Please rest for the evening and tomorrow we can actually begin the proper training. Neither of you are ready for that currently,” Kuroh instructed. 

Leaving the two alone, Munakata bowed shakily, thanking Kuroh and Shiro for their help with creating the bond. Minus the magical energy, Munakata didn’t feel much different, but he knew it would greatly help him and Suoh. 

Making his way back to the hay, he sat down slowly, his body aching. “That was…certainly intense,” he whispered, staring up at the ceiling. He was surprised when Suoh moved next to him, pressing his body up against the mage’s.

“S’cold,” he muttered, shivering once. “Your magic is damn cold. How did you survive?” he groaned, leaning his forehead on Munakata’s shoulder. The mage blushed and looked down at him.

“I don’t know. How did you stand being so hot?” he asked with a chuckle. But Suoh’s breathing had already evened out, a small sigh escaping his lips. “I find it hard to believe one man could fall asleep so fast,” Munakata smirked, realizing the ritual truly had tired them both out. Moving closer to the shifter, he felt his own eyes droop heavily as he fell into a deep sleep.

~~~

Munakata was surprised to find Suoh sleeping next to him once morning arrived—normally Suoh was always awake before him. He didn’t mind having him there, actually it was relieving to see the other sleeping so calmly next to him. Yawning, he shut his eyes, feeling the magical energy coursing through his body. It was much more bearable now, especially since he didn't feel so hot anymore. 

Groaning, Suoh rolled over and sat up tentatively. “Damn, my head hurts,” he grunted. 

“Good morning,” Munakata said sleepily, stretching up. 

“I feel as though I slept forever,” he groaned, flopping backwards onto the hay. 

“We did sleep for quite a long time, but it was probably for the best,” the mage chuckled. “How do you feel?” he asked, leaning over the shifter. 

The Red Dragon shrugged and yawned. “Hungry,” he grumbled. 

“I’m sure Kuroh made something to eat,” he chuckled, pushing himself up. He offered a hand out to the shifter, who took it, standing with the mage. “Do you feel any different?” Munakata asked softly. 

Suoh shook his head. “Nah. Though I don’t feel so cold anymore,” he shrugged, rolling his shoulders back. “Do you?” 

“Mmm, my magical energy feels stronger, but other than that, no,” he admitted with a soft chuckle. “I guess we’ll have to wait and see.” 

Walking into the house, Munakata had been correct in assuming Kuroh was making breakfast. In fact, the food was already sitting out waiting on the table. Shiro was happy to learn that both men seemed to be doing fine and decided they could try having Suoh shift after they finished eating. Munakata couldn’t help but laugh at Suoh when he began to eat; he’d never seen him shovel food into his mouth so quickly. 

After breakfast, the four stood back in the field where they had spent the prior afternoon. “It’s up to you how exactly you want to go about doing this,” Shiro began. “Kuroh usually bites a small spot on my neck or wrist. But if biting is uncomfortable for you, you can do it by creating an incision with a small knife,” he explained.

“You don’t need to take a lot of blood, just a little bit. If you take too much, you run the risk of having your human pass out. That isn’t good for you, since when you’re shifted, you’re sharing magical energy to hold the form,” Kuroh explained. “It’s most important for you protect your human, because if anything happens to Munakata, you won’t be able to hold the form.” The black-haired male nuzzled Shiro’s cheek. “The closer you are, the easier it is to understand how each other is feeling while shifted,” he said. “We’ll go first, and then you can try.” 

Shiro pulled the collar of his jacket down, revealing his bare neck to Kuroh. The dark-haired male leaned forward, pressing his teeth into Shiro’s neck. For a moment, the mage winced, but his eyes shut slowly as Kuroh stayed close to his skin. Pulling back, he stepped away from Shiro, a dark light engulfed Kuroh’s body as he shifted to his large black dragon form. Long black wings spread out from the orb of light and the dragon’s roar sounded throughout the field. As the light slowly dissipated, it revealed a large black dragon. Floating back down to the ground, he pressed his snout against Shiro’s face, who nuzzled him back, running his hand down the dragon’s nose. 

“Shifting will be exactly the same as it is on the full moon, but instead of using your magical energy, you’ll be using Munakata’s blood to fuel the shift. Does this make sense?” Shiro asked. 

Suoh nodded and turned to Munakata. “Ready?” he asked quietly. 

Munakata nodded. He held up his wrist and pushed his sleeve up. “Is here alright?” he asked, not sure if he was quite ready to have the shifter bite into his neck. Suoh nodded and wrapped his hand around the mage’s wrist, pulling it up to his lips. Clamping his teeth down, Munakata could feel him break the skin and he let out a small hiss of air, pain shooting up his arm. Suoh’s amber eyes glanced towards Munakata, not wanting to hurt the mage too much. He could feel Suoh’s mouth tickling his skin and the feeling of his blood and magic leaving his body felt strange. Even with Suoh taking a small amount, Munakata felt his head spin for a moment. It was such a foreign feeling, sharing his magic with another being. He let his arm fall by his side as Suoh stepped back. 

A purple light glowed around Suoh’s body, engulfing him as it had Kuroh. In a matter of moment, his red wings thrust out of the light, flapping slowly. Munakata recognized the red dragon he had fought only a little while ago. It was so strange to see the creature in such a different light. He had been so hell bent on fighting it and now—they were partners and friends. Suoh lowered himself to the ground, sitting next to Munakata. The mage reached out his hand, stroking down Suoh’s long red snout. Blowing out a puff of smoke, his gaze stayed focused on the other pair, waiting for them to provide further instructions. 

“Great!” Shiro smiled. The black dragon bowed his head as Shiro gripped Kuroh’s shoulders, positioning himself on his back. “Being able to fly around is really useful, so you should get used to doing so,” he nodded. 

Suoh bent his own neck down and Munakata followed Shiro’s lead, swinging his legs over to sit on Suoh’s back. “Don’t go too fast,” he muttered. “I’m not used to flying like you,” he admitted. 

Shooting up into the sky, Kuroh and Shiro took off. Shiro explained that eventually Munakata would be able to use magic while flying around like this, but for now, the most important thing was to get used to flying. 

Following suit with the others, Suoh shot up into the air. Lunging forward, Munakata clung to his back, not expecting the force of taking off to be so strong. As they flew forward, Shiro waved, gesturing for them to follow all the moves they made. Glancing down, Munakata decided to not. They were higher up than he realized and looking down made him feel a tad dizzy. Suoh was flying far faster than Munakata realized he would be, the wind whipping in his face and pounding against his chest. He was sure it was a feeling he would eventually grow more familiar with, but currently, he felt light-headed. 

Suoh moved about in the air with fast, yet graceful movements. Munakata wished he didn’t feel so dizzy. His eyes fluttered, trying to focus on Kuroh and Shiro flying ahead of them.

“Suoh,” he called out, but the shifter didn’t acknowledge the call. “Suoh!” he yelled once more. “Suoh—if you would just…listen to me for two…seconds.” Munakata’s voice started strong, but he began fade out of consciousness. His body flopped forward, resting against the dragon’s back. Letting out a large roar, Suoh dove towards the ground, feeling the magic escaping his body. Before landing, the light began to fold around his body, his form slipping back to a human. As he collapsed onto the ground, Munakata’s body fell on top of him. 

Groaning, Suoh turned around, pushing himself up. That had certainly been unpleasant—a rush of magical energy leaving his body was not something he wanted to experience again anytime soon. Rolling over, he helped Munakata sit up, holding him in his arms.

“Damn idiot…” he cursed. Though really he was mad at himself for not listening when Munakata had been trying to speak; he had barely heard the mage over the wind. Admittedly, shifting at will was so freeing, he’d been lost in his own thoughts. 

Landing behind him, Shiro hopped off of Kuroh and dashed over. “What happened?!” he said. 

“Dunno,” Suoh grumbled. “He started to say something but then just flopped over on my back.” 

“Mmm,” Shiro muttered and closed his eyes, hovering his hand over Munakata’s forehead. “His magical energy is fluctuating. He probably wasn’t used to using it in such a way. Plus with the high elevation—it happens. I’ve passed out many times,” he chuckled. “Let’s head back, he’ll wake up soon I’m sure. His life isn’t in danger.” 

Letting out a sigh, Suoh picked up Munakata, carrying him back towards the barn behind the cabin. “I’ll take care of him then,” he muttered. Making his way back inside of the old wooden barn, he slowly trudged to the back of the room. Resting Munakata down in the hay where they had slept for the past few nights, Suoh smoothed out his bangs and pressed his lips to his forehead. 

 “Damn pretty asshole,” he muttered, staring down at the mage. The man’s purple eyes fluttered, his chest heaving softly as he began to breathe heavier. As his eyes met Suoh’s, both of their faces turned bright red. 

 “S-Suoh!” he choked out. “What are you doing?!” he exclaimed, moving to sit up. In one swift motion, they banged foreheads; Munakata flopping back down against the hay and Suoh backing up, groaning.

“Dammit Munakata. What the hell!” he growled, cupping his forehead.

“You startled me! I didn’t expect to wake up and see you so close to my face!” he exclaimed. Still blushing, he sat back up and shook his head. “I apologize, I…I don’t really remember what happened,” he admitted finally. 

“You passed out. We were flying and you passed out. So stay lying down, idiot.” 

“Right…” he groaned. “I was trying to get your attention. You _need_ to listen,” he sighed.

“Yeah, sorry. Got lost in the moment,” he grumbled, rubbing the back of his neck. After a brief pause, he looked down at the mage. “You okay?” 

“Yes,” Munakata sighed. “I feel a bit weak. I wasn’t used to the feeling and it was rather overwhelming. Though I feel a bit pathetic for passing out the first time.” 

“Nah, Shiro said he’s passed out lots. Don’t beat yourself up,” Suoh shrugged, moving to sit next to him. “As long as you’re good now.” 

“Yeah, I’ll be fine. We’ll have to try again. I’ll have to get used to the feeling as soon as possible.” Munakata shook his head, running a hand through his hair. 

Nudging him, Suoh smirked. “Oi,” he muttered as Munakata turned to face him. Tucking a piece of his dark hair behind his ear, Suoh brushed their lips together again. “You’ll get it,” he whispered. “You’re a strong mage and all that shit you always ramble about.” 

“Touching, really,” Munakata smirked, pressing his forehead to Suoh’s.

“You kinda scared me today,” he admitted, bringing his hand up to his neck. He ran his thumb over Munakata’s lips gently. “I don’t know if it’s this damn bond or being around you so much, but…I was kinda nervous I killed ya’…” he whispered. 

Tilting his head towards Suoh’s hand, he let out a soft sigh. “I think you would’ve noticed if you killed me.” 

 “Yeah,” he said, pressing their lips together again. Tugging on his lower lip, Suoh slipped his tongue into Munakata’s mouth, wrapping the wet muscle around the mage’s. The mage let out a soft moan, pressing closer to the shifter. Suoh cupped his cheeks, holding their lips together as he kissed him harder. The two panted softly when the red-haired shifter pulled away. “Well…” Suoh muttered. “I’m happy you’re okay,” he whispered.   

“Me too…” Munakata replied, his face flushed. Did the bond make kissing the shifter better? Munakata wasn’t sure, but he knew that his heart was pounding far faster than the first time they had kissed and he definitely didn’t mind.

~~~

Fushimi had never been so happy to see light in his whole damn life. Generally, he much preferred to be indoors and while that was still true, he was thankful to be out of the cavern and away from the damn rats. He completely despised nature for creating disgusting creatures like that. 

“I can’t believe we made it,” Awashima sighed, shielding her eyes from the bright sun shining down on both of them as they stepped out of the cave’s exit. “And actually I’m surprised to see so much green,” she admitted softly, looking at the vast plains which lay before them.

“Mmm,” Fushimi agreed. “Definitely not what I was expecting. Whoever made this map was severely mistaken.” Silently he wondered why. Was someone hiding something? Or were people too scared to venture beyond Homra Mountain, in fear that they would succumb to wastelands which had disappeared in the time humans hadn’t traversed here. Unfortunately for Awashima and Fushimi, they were now in uncharted land. Fushimi prayed they wouldn’t run into any more strange creatures. 

Far on the horizon, Awashima could see a long line of what she assumed to be trees. Pointing her finger in that general direction, Fushimi turned his attention to the horizon. “I think our best bet would be to head to the forest,” she muttered. “Hopefully we can find some sign of life that isn’t hostile.”

“Yes. One could only hope…” Fushimi muttered as he began to step through the tall grass.

 ~~~

“Do you think King is ever going to come back, Kusanagi? What if the mage stole him forever?” Totsuka hummed. Stepping through the tall grass to Kusanagi’s pasture, Yata, Kusanagi and Totsuka were gathering some of the crop. Normally, Kusanagi would do it by himself, but lately Yata had insisted on _attempting_ to be more useful to the clan and Totsuka was always wanting to try new things. Of course, this made the whole process go twenty times longer than it had to. 

Scratching his head, Kusanagi sighed. “I’m sure Munakata didn’t steal Mikoto away. It’s only been a little over a week,” he mused. “They had to find that immortal pair, and then possibly train with them—these things take time.” 

“Yeah! And c’mon! Mikoto wouldn’t let some dumb _human_ mage have control over him like that. Are you kidding?!” Yata snorted, folding his arms as he almost dumped out the corn he held in his basket. 

Rolling his eyes, Kusanagi let out a long sigh. “Yata, I’m glad you’re enthusiastic but can you please watch what you’re doing?” 

Straightening up, the shorter male glanced down at the basket he had almost dropped. “Oops…” he chuckled, trying to focus on gathering more corn.

Glancing out towards the grass, Kusanagi noticed two shapes moving slowly only a little ways from the edge of the field. “What the hell…” he mumbled, placing his basket down. Stepping past Yata and Totsuka, he squinted. “Are those more humans?” 

 “WHAT!? WHERE?!” Yata’s voice boomed. He whipped around, tossing the corn straight out of the basket. 

“Idiot. Calm down,” Kusanagi sighed, pushing Yata’s face to the side as he stepped forward. Walking towards the edge of the field, he attempted to make out the two figures moving closer. Yata and Totsuka joined him by his side, mimicking his movement.

 “Just let them come! I’ll beat ‘em if they try and fight us!” Yata said, holding his fists up excitedly. Totsuka chuckled and rubbed Yata’s head. 

 “How brave of you, Yata,” he smirked. 

Kusanagi rolled his eyes again and sighed. “Let’s try and be nice first before we jump into things, okay? If they attack then we can consider attacking, but for now let’s not rush into things, alright?” he instructed. Yata and Totsuka both had a bad habit of rushing into things without thinking. Kusanagi hoped to prevent that as much as he possibly could. 

As the two figures moved closer, Kusanagi could make out a man and a woman, both dressed in dark blue robes. Silently he wondered if they had any relation to the High Magus. It seemed too much of a coincidence to have more humans show up after the mage had just been there. 

Waving, Kusanagi cupped his hand to his mouth and called out, “Hello?!” The man and woman froze, staring at each other for a brief moment. Though they both continued to approach slowly, cautious of the others. “Don’t say anything,” he said, pointing at Yata especially. “I will do the talking. I don’t want to set either of them off. If they’re mages like Munakata, we could have a real problem on our hands.”

 Within minutes, the pair approached slowly, walking up to the three men. “Hello,” the woman said warily. Her eyes moved up and down their bodies and Kusanagi was certain these humans had never seen shifters before. 

“Hello!” Totsuka smiled, immediately ignoring Kusanagi’s order to not speak before him. 

The dark-haired male folded his arms and scoffed. “Tsk, perhaps you could help us. We’re looking for a man. He’s about as tall as you, dark blue hair, glasses—may or may not be wearing a dress.” 

 Snorting, Kusanagi began to laugh. “So you are related to Munakata then?” he asked. 

 The blonde woman’s eyes widened, looking relieved. “You know him!? Is he here?” she asked, glancing around. 

“Nope! He went on a long quest with King!” Totsuka chuckled. “Well, what I mean to say is he was here and he’ll probably be back sometime soon?” 

“…are you…” the dark-haired male groaned, clearly exasperated. “We come all this way and the idiot is off gallivanting around with some other king?!” Folding his arms, he rolled his eyes. 

“At least he’s alive,” the woman hissed. 

“Ah—mmm, you both have clearly traveled very far,” Kusanagi chuckled, holding his hands up. “If you come with us, we can explain in more detail perhaps. I’m sure a beauty such as yourself would love to sit down and have a nice warm meal,” he smiled at the woman.

Eyeing him warily, the blonde took a step back. “And who are you exactly?” she inquired skeptically.

 “Ah, I’m Kusanagi Izumo and this is Totsuka Tatara and that’s Yata Misaki. We’re dragon shifters,” he explained. 

“D-Dragon shifters?” she stammered. Her expression changed and Kusanagi couldn’t tell if she understood more or less. 

“Shifters? As in you can change into dragons at will?” the dark haired male asked. “That’s impossible. No such thing.” 

With a growl, Yata stepped towards the unpleasant male. “We’re standin’ right in front of you dumbass, how can you just _decide_ we don’t exist!” he growled. 

“Aren’t you pleasant…” the boy scoffed. 

 “Ah, Fushimi!” The woman sighed. “I’m Awashima Seri and this is Fushimi Saruhiko. Munakata is our Captain—we are mages as well. We saw him get taken by what I can only assume was one of your dragon shifters. We followed the dragon to the east until we got here,” she sighed. 

“You’re clearly exhausted,” Kusanagi spoke gently. “Munakata was indeed here. Mikoto, our leader—he brought him here and the two of them have gone off in search of a mage and dragon shifter duo. They should be returning soon. I’m sorry I can’t provide you with better news,” he nodded. 

With a long sigh, Awashima shook her head. “No, to be completely honest, I am so relieved to hear he’s alive. And yes, we’ll gladly take you up on your offer to rest,” she sighed. With a nod, Kusanagi began to turn away, leading them back towards the village.

Fushimi’s eyes widened. “Awashima! What if they’re lying? We don’t know anything about these creatures. For all we know, they could be leading us back to their caves to eat us,” he scoffed. 

With a snort, Yata leaned forward towards Fushimi. “Like any of us would want to eat you,” he growled, wrinkling his nose. “I got better shit to eat,” he snorted, turning around to continue collecting some of the corn. 

“Ah, Fushimi was it?” Totsuka smiled. “We’re very peaceful here. You have nothing to worry about.” Even with the reassuring words from the shifters, Fushimi couldn’t help but be wary of them. 

Waving goodbye to Totsuka and Yata, Kusanagi led the two humans towards the village. He began to explain what had happened. He mentioned how the King had stolen Anna and when Munakata found out, he was so frustrated he had offered to help. Awashima chuckled, thinking that sounded just like him. She had always respected the man’s sense of justice. Fushimi on the other hand, continued to scoff angrily the more he heard. Of course Munakata would run off on some quest to help people he barely knew. It was just like the fool to jump at the chance to help others.

“He found some text about a bond between mages and dragon shifters. There is only one pair remaining and he and Mikoto went to go find them,” Kusanagi explained, letting them into his house. “He thought if he and Mikoto combined their power, they would have a better chance of getting Anna back.” 

 “Sounds just like him,” she chuckled, practically collapsing onto Kusanagi’s couch. 

“Idiot,” Fushimi sighed. “I guess we have no choice but to wait here,” he muttered. “Do you have any idea when they’ll be back?” 

Kusanagi shook his head. “Unfortunately no. I think Mikoto wanted to be back before the next full moon. Ah—we can only shift on the full moon and I know he wanted to try and get Anna back again,” he explained. 

“Well,” Awashima began. “Fushimi and I will follow whatever the Captain does. If he chooses to fight with you, we will fight with you as well. No young girl should be away from her home for this long,” she muttered. She wanted to hear the words from Munakata’s mouth directly, but Awashima was mostly relieved to hear would be returning soon. 

“You can stay here for now. There’s two extra rooms upstairs if you both want your own space,” Kusanagi chuckled. 

Picking up the bags, Fushimi nodded. “Thank you. I am rather spent. So I’ll be retiring for a bit,” he sighed, leaving Awashima and Kusanagi alone in the room. 

“So do you love this Captain of yours?” Kusanagi smirked once they were alone. He handed her a cup of water while Awashima’s face immediately flushed. 

“No! N-No!” she replied, waving her hands quickly. “I respect him greatly and I have learned a lot from him. But no, he’s quite a handful and we are definitely platonic,” she sighed, taking a large gulp of water. “Though he is a handful, I didn’t want to see him killed by a dragon,” she frowned. 

“Of course, of course,” Kusanagi chuckled. “I was merely curious.” Her face was still flushed as she placed the cup on the table in front of her. 

“Thank you for your hospitality. I think it best if I get some rest now too. However, I am hoping to learn more about you and your kind,” she smiled, bowing her head to him. Kusanagi nodded, watching her walk upstairs. It seemed humans weren’t _all_ bad. 

~~~

 Hirasaka was impressed by how quickly Fushimi and Awashima dealt with many of the hardships that came their way. It certainly made her job easier and harder at the same time. The longer they survived, the longer she had to trail them. 

They’d made it passed the tunnel and they’d continued all the way to the shifter village, which was actually impressive that they had made it there on pure instinct. So many times had she so desperately wanted to steer them on a different path.

But now, as she sat hidden away, she was happy she did not. Letting them arrive at the village allowed her to overhear valuable information which may have proven difficult to discover otherwise. Hearing the dragon shifters speak of what had happened to the mage and Red Dragon terrified her, knowing the King would not be pleased. If they had figured out how to create a bond, she knew they would be extremely powerful. If they were planning to attack on the next full moon, she knew she had to get back immediately and warn the King of what was to come. She could only hope the mage and Red Dragon wouldn’t be compatible enough to actually bond. 

 ~~~

The next few days were full of training for Munakata and Suoh. Thankfully, Munakata didn’t pass out again, but flying was still incredibly jarring to the mage. He was slowly adjusting to it, especially when Suoh had learned to fly a bit slower at first, allowing Munakata to grow accustomed to the altitude changes. Shiro promised it would get easier with time, especially now that they had begun to use magic during flight. 

At first, Munakata had focused on his skill attacks, finding his flame magic was now incredibly powerful. It was to be expected, since he had joined his energy with Suoh. He could also use his saber during flight, infusing his ice magic as he normally did. Just as Shiro had said, flying was growing easier day by day. Simply over the past few days, Munakata and Suoh were growing to be more in sync. 

Suoh could tell when Munakata needed him to slow down, or when his magical energy was running low. And with the movement of Suoh’s body, Munakata could expect shifts in flight. 

“You’re getting much better,” Shiro said happily at dinner that evening. Most of their training focus had been on flight and using magic during flight. Munakata figured this would be the most helpful to them if they went to fight the King. Being able to attack from the sky would certainly have its advantages. As far as Munakata was aware, the King would have no counter to magic from the sky unless he hired different mages, which wasn’t out of the realm of possibility.

“Thank you.” Munakata bowed his head gratefully. “I am feeling much more confident. It helps that someone listens to me better,” he smirked, glancing at Suoh. Scoffing the shifter, folded his arms. As far as he was concerned, they listened to each other, not wanting to give Munakata the satisfaction of being in charge.

“Yes you’ve come a long way in the past few days. It helps that you’re both very strong in the first place. With more time and training, I think you’ll easily surpass us,” Shiro chuckled softly. 

“We’ve been alive for quite a long time,” Kuroh admitted. “But we’ve not been training like this.”

“It’s nice to see it working out for another pair,” Shiro smiled, bowing to the two. “We’ve always been happy to share this knowledge, though it seems humans and shifters did not want to be involved with one another anymore. I’m happy that is not the case.” 

“While we currently do have an objective in front of us, I would eventually like to use our bond to strengthen the relationship between humans and shifters,” Munakata explained. 

“That would be wonderful,” Shiro smiled.

“Yes. Once we’ve dealt with the King, perhaps we can decide how to approach the tension between the two species,” he nodded, glancing at Suoh, who hadn’t changed his expression at all.

However, Munakata was growing worried about the King’s counter attack. He was a smart man, smart enough to learn of the shifters’ existence and of their ability to bond, something humans hadn’t known about for some time. It was more than likely he would know about Munakata and Suoh and plan a strong counter attack. He had worked hard to keep Anna for as long as he had, Munakata knew he wasn’t going to let her go easily. 

The moment they were alone in the barn that evening, Suoh spoke up bluntly. “You’re worried.”

“Eh?” Munakata asked, staring up at the shifter while he sat down in the hay. At night, he always felt so exhausted, drained from the amount of magical energy they often used. Normally, he and Suoh would go to sleep immediately, which pleased the shifter since he didn’t care much for small talk.

Tapping his chest, Suoh sighed. “The bond. I can feel how worried you are, so don’t bother lying.” Munakata’s face flushed. He had yet to feel any sort of emotion from Suoh, so he couldn’t tell if the shifter was being honest or not. It didn’t change the fact that he was correct; Munakata was worried.

“Mmm,” he hummed. “I’m concerned about the attack on the King,” he said softly. “We’ve been here for quite some time and we should head back to your village. There are many options to consider. If we attack now, the King won’t expect it; having the element of surprise on our side could be very beneficial. However, if we wait for the full moon in about a week, your comrades could come with us and give us more fighting power. But then the King would maybe be expecting an attack and-"

"Stop," Suoh grunted. "You're giving me a headache with all this explaining," he groaned. Flopping down onto the hay next to him, Suoh scratched the back of his neck. 

"Do you think I don't have a headache?" Munakata sighed, leaning over him. "I keep running through possible scenarios in my head," he muttered. Though he stayed hovering over the shifter, his gaze glanced to the side. 

Suoh's eyes opened, keeping them locked on Munakata’s. Letting out a sigh, he brought his hand up to the mage’s neck and pulled his head down, their lips meeting. It had been a few nights since the second heated kiss they had shared and Munakata sighed into it, welcoming the pleasurable feeling rolling down his spine. 

"Suoh..." he whispered as the shifter, rest his hand on his cheek. Moving his hand to his shoulder, Suoh pressed Munakata back, rolling to hover on top of him. Blushing, the mage rest his purple gaze on Suoh's amber eyes. 

"Stop thinking so damn much," Suoh muttered. The shifter couldn't help but find the mage attractive, his dark hair resting softly against the light hay.

"I'm not thinking too much. I'm trying to think logically," he said. 

"Well stop," Suoh replied sharply, lowering himself to Munakata's lips again, kissing down his jaw. "Let me slow your brain down for two seconds," he whispered against Munakata's ear. A shiver trailed through his body, his back pressing against the hay. It had been awhile since Munakata had lay with anyone and kissing Suoh certainly had been enjoyable. His eyes shut as he let Suoh's words wash over his body in a wave of pleasure. Thoughts of continuing had crossed his mind, especially now he and Suoh were bonded. Of course, Shiro had said they didn't have to have this kind of relationship, but with the way Suoh had kissed him and gently whispered those words into his ear, he didn't want to say no. His heart throbbed in his chest as his breathing grew shallow.

"Alright," he whispered, wrapping an arm around Suoh's neck. His lithe finger's trailed through the shifter's red locks. 

"Good," he smirked and pressed his lips to Munakata's neck, his wet mouth latching on to his pale skin, sucking at his pulse gently. 

"Ah...Suoh..." Munakata sighed softly, his hand curling into a fist in his hair. His eyes stayed shut and his mouth draped open as his head fell further against the hay. His chest heaved gently, letting the feeling of Suoh's tongue trail over his skin. 

"Munakata, you're pretty. You know that?" Suoh chuckled, slipping his hand underneath the mage's dark shirt. His rough fingers pushed the fabric up and over his head, tossing the the shirt to the side. 

"I wouldn't say...pretty," he panted softly. Suoh brought his lips back to his skin, kissing from his shoulder all the way down to his arm, enjoying the feeling of Munakata's hand rubbing through his hair. He let out a deep purr, kissing at the bandage on his wrist where Suoh had been taking blood from the mage. 

"Does it hurt?" he asked quietly, running a finger down the wrapped bandage. 

Munakata shook his head slowly. "Not anymore. I'm used to it," he whispered. His hand moved to cup Suoh's cheek, his thumb stroking at the red markings which covered his rough skin. 

"Sorry," he mumbled, thinking the mage shouldn't have to be used to him biting into his body and stealing his blood. It was a choice they had made together and Suoh was thankful, more thankful than he was willing to admit, that Munakata had willing given himself to help him. 

"You don't have to be," he whispered softly as Suoh brought his lips down to his chest. Kissing at Munakata's skin, he wrapped a tongue around one of his nipples, sucking on him. His tongue swirled over the small bud. "Ah...S-Suoh..." he whimpered softly, his fingers playing with the small wisps of red hair which gently curled against Suoh's neck. 

"Lemme make you feel good," he muttered, kissing down Munakata's stomach, the mage’s hand slowly slipping out of his hair. Suoh's hand palmed at the slightly raised bulge in Munakata's pants. With a hiss, Munakata's hips raised up, his lashes fluttering against his cheeks. The noise was all Suoh needed to be spurred on as he ran his hand down Munakata's leg, removing one of his boots, then he repeated the action on the opposite leg. Moving back up, he grinned at the mage, enjoying the way his chest rose and fell with his sharp breaths. He wanted to see him affected by his touch. He wanted to see him lose himself, if only for a brief moment.

He tugged at the belt around Munakata's waist, tugging the pants down over his hips. Dipping his head down, he pressed his mouth to the tip of Munakata's already half-hard length, taking him in slowly. 

"Ah! N...Ngh...S-Suoh." Munakata's back arched, his hand finding it's way back into Suoh's hair immediately. His breathing was heavy and his back arching against the hay as his hips gently pressed up into the shifter's mouth. "Ah...." he sighed, his knees raising slightly as his toes curled against the ground. 

A moan rolled through Suoh's chest up to his throat, vibrating around Munakata's now fully hardened length. Suoh's mouth was hot and Munakata couldn't find any words to properly speak the feelings which danced on his heated skin. It had been so long since he'd done anything remotely sexual, even to himself, and the way Suoh's tongue wrapped around him—Munakata had lost any coherent thoughts which had previously swirled around in his mind.

He felt Suoh's fingers pressed into his thigh and his other hand moved slowly to his mouth. Pausing his sucking for a brief moment to wet his fingers, he slipped the digits into his mouth before he released them with a light pop. 

"You...obviously know what you're doing," Munakata glanced down at him, regretting it the moment he did. Suoh face was a gentle red he hadn't seen before, his lips swollen ever so slightly. An accidental huff of pleasure escaped from Munakata’s lips, surprised by how turned on the shifter seemed to be as well. 

"I do," he grinned cockily, pressing a wet finger to Munakata's hole and pushing inside of him. Munakata winced slightly, his chest raising and hips rocking down as he relaxed in to the feeling of Suoh’s finger. Suoh's tongue returned to the belly of his length, his hot mouth wrapping around the base, licking him while he pushed his finger inside. 

Munakata couldn't remember the last time he had felt such a bizarre mix of sensations. His cock twitched against the smooth, heated tongue Suoh continued to trail over the taught skin, yet his ass tightened with each press of Suoh’s finger deep inside of him. Suoh's other hand gently stroked at his thigh, the touch tingling his sensitive and heated body. 

"S-Suoh..." Munakata panted, wiggling his hips down against the now two fingers thrusting inside of him. The more Suoh moved, the more Munakata wanted to run his hands over his body, press their lips together and _feel_ him—be connected to him completely. "Hurry..." he moaned out.

"Since when have you ever been impatient?" Suoh teased, pressing a third finger into him. He curled his tips up, brushing against what he hoped was the mage's most pleasurable spot. 

"A-Ah! S-Suoh!" he yelped, his hips thrusting up towards the fingers, desperate for more contact. "Please...I need..." he begged, his was throat dry and his eyes watered from the pleasure which had shot up his spine. 

Red-faced, Suoh pulled back and shoved his pants down as he stroked his own hard length in his hand. Moving forward, he placed his tip to Munakata's stretched hole. He hovered over him and Suoh began to press inside. Leaning forward on his elbows, he pressed his forehead to Munakata's. The mage slid his hands up, his palms gripping at Suoh's shoulder's holding onto his shirt as he felt the shifter push inside of him completely. 

"Damn," the shifter grunted. His head fell against Munakata’s shoulder and he listened to the mage pant softly next to his ear. His face twisted in pleasure as Suoh buried himself inside of Munakata fully. "Tight," he whispered, kissing at his bright red cheeks. "You okay?" he asked, staring down at the mage's lust-filled, purple eyes. 

With a slow nod, Munakata panted against his lips. "Yes," he said softly, cupping at his cheeks and moving his fingers stroked down the gentle red markings on Suoh’s skin. "Move your hips," he said, pressing a shaky kiss against the shifter's lips. 

With a gentle thrust, Suoh began to push into Munakata, his tip deep inside of the mage. He shut his eyes, panting his name softly against his lips. He moved his hips with Suoh's and hooked a leg around Suoh’s, hoping to angle him deeper . 

"Somehow..." the shifter panted, "you look even prettier up close," he grunted. Opening his eyes, the two connected, Suoh pressing inside as Munakata's breath puffed out from between his lips in soft pants. His purple eyes were filled with such trust. Together they were a bonded pair, now in many ways. Staring into Suoh's eyes, Munakata was happy to see he reciprocated the feelings. 

Letting out a large huff of air, Munakata moaned quietly against Suoh's lips. "S-Shut up," he hissed. Pressing closer to him, Suoh's lips connected with Munakata's neck, sucking on the skin as his hips thrust faster inside of him. His hot breath trickled over the mage's skin, kissing him between breaths. 

"Reisi..." he mumbled softly against his ear, eliciting a deep moan from the mage. He hadn't been expecting Suoh to call him so informally. Hearing his name, lust-filled, against his ear while Suoh rocked into him made the mage's stomach twist in pleasure, his length twitching between their hips. 

"M-Mikoto..." he moaned. His arms shook, completely wrapped around Suoh’s neck, his hands buried in his red hair. Feeling Suoh pressing deep inside, Munakata felt the head of his tip brushing perfectly against his core. He moaned, feeling the tension tightening in his length, throbbing against the shifter. 

"My mage," Suoh groaned, nibbling gently on his neck. Munakata shivered, his head tilting to the side, pressing against Suoh’s lips.

“Yes, your mage…” he sighed, his leg trembling around Suoh’s waist. His own hips rolled up to meet Suoh’s movements, the two of them rocking together against the hay.

With one deep push of Suoh's hips, Munakata felt the tension in his cock release, a wave of pleasure rolling through his body. His fingertips trembled against the shifter's back.

"S-Suoh...I'm...a-ah! Ngh..." he groaned, pressing his forehead against Suoh's shoulder, his body twitching as his release shivered through his body. 

“Ah...M-Munakata...a-ah..." With the jerky movement from the mage and the clenching of his ass around him, Suoh was quick to follow suit, his own finish rolling through his body as he pressed deep inside the mage. 

Resting against him, Suoh placed lazy kisses on the man's naked shoulder. Both of them panting as they came down from the pleasurable high.

"W-Well...then..." Munakata mumbled finally, stroking his hand through Suoh's hair. Lazily, the shifter separated them, pulling the blanket over their bodies. 

"Bet you stopped thinkin'" Suoh mumbled, keeping his arm wrapped tightly around the mage's waist. 

"Perhaps..." he whispered tiredly. 

"Good," he chuckled, kissing his neck once more. "We can talk about leaving. Maybe in the afternoon tomorrow," he mumbled, already starting to fall asleep. Munakata was anything but surprised as he pressed himself close to the shifter.

"Alright," he sighed. "Good night, Suoh." 

~~~

Iwafune held Anna's hand tightly as they made their way down the steps of the cold stone corridor. They only came this way every so often—maybe a few times a week if she was lucky. It was such a rare occurrence, getting the chance to see her brother. He was sick and she knew how much his condition affected both him and their father. 

Her father spent so many nights, looking into his glass with tired, sad eyes. Anna was sure he thought she didn't notice, but she did. She noticed every flick of his eyes, every slur of his word and every daze he often fell into, staring off into the dark distance. Perhaps he thought she was too young to notice, but she noticed. She noticed every story his eyes told. 

She knew her father loved her, but nothing was as important as a father's love to his son, especially to a son who meant to take over the throne one day. She hated not being able to speak of him. He was a secret, as a preventative measure against a possible tragedy—no kingdom wanted to hear of their only prince’s death. 

She hated seeing him in the bed. His pale body weak and unmoving, his sad eyes desperately wanting to share in the laughter they had as younger children. Still, Anna liked getting to see him. She would've sat with him all day, if it meant bringing a small smile to his face. 

"I've been missing Nagare," she whispered softly, squeezing onto her father's hand. They stood outside of the large wooden door. “We haven’t visited in awhile.” Iwafune did not answer and Anna could only assume that could mean one thing—his condition was growing worse.

Occasionally she would have dreams that felt almost like visions. Visions of her flying through the sky and her brother alive and laughing, innocent, like the children they used to be. Anna knew these were strange thoughts, a scenario she would never live out. She would never be able to take to the sky. 

There was a part of her that wanted to study magic. Perhaps she could find a way to heal her brother and in turn heal their family. But she knew her father would never approve of such a thing. She was a princess and she couldn’t be running around learning magic. Plus they had had healers come and attempt to cure Nagare of his disease to no avail. 

The door opened and Anna’s eyes slowly adjusted to the dark room. It was a small room with a large bed placed in the center, though there were shelves with many books which lined the walls. Her pupils widened to attempt to see the boy in front of her. “Nagare,” she said. There was a small bounce in her tone as she ran to his side. The boy pushed himself up and smiled down at her, happy for the company. 

“Anna,” he smiled. “I missed you.” 

“I missed you more,” she said softly, resting her palms on his bed. “Father said you’ve been very tired lately,” she whispered. 

“Mm, but don’t worry about me,” he said, his tone gentle as he stroked through her silver hair. 

“Of course I worry about Nagare,” she said gently. “Have you been reading a lot?” she asked. She always wanted to know about the books Nagare had discovered, mostly because she usually wanted to read them along with him. They often would spend hours discussing books, if Nagare felt up for it. Lately, he hadn’t been as interested in discussing reading like they normally did. Nowadays, they would talk for a bit until Father shooed her away, so the two could discuss whatever it was they needed to in private. Perhaps it was simply that they were growing older and Nagare was to take over the throne if he ever got better. He had to be prepared for that, sick or not. Anna only wished Nagare wanted to spend more time with her and not just their father.

After speaking for a short while, the same thing happened today. Iwafune sent his daughter away, claiming he needed time to speak to his son alone, so Anna made her way back to the main halls of the castle. Nagare was so strange nowadays, she truly missed the boy she once knew as her brother.

Iwafune felt guilty shooing the girl away, he knew how much she loved spending time with Nagare, and really, strengthening their bond would only help in the future. 

“Anna, she still doesn’t realize?” Nagare asked softly, once Anna had left the room. “Even with the dragon attacks, she hasn’t discovered…” he trailed off, staring at the door as though he were scared she was on the other side.

“No…” Iwafune muttered softly. “Anna knows nothing. Though I fear her change will come soon. Once that happens, I will explain the situation. You and her can perform the ritual then. I don’t foresee her saying no for any reason, though the truth may scare her. I fear hiding her true identity was more detrimental in the end.” 

“No,” Nagare shook his head. “This way she has an attachment to us. if we had told her, it’s possible she would have wanted to return to her own kind,” he whispered. “I’m certain she will agree to the ritual,” he muttered. 

“I can only hope your bond is strong enough,” Iwafune sighed, rubbing his forehead.

Nagare clenched his fists, gripping at the covers of his sheets. “It won’t be like last time,” he muttered. 

“Perhaps you should spend some more time with the girl. Read with her. She loves you,” he chuckled, leaning back. 

“It will work and she will agree, but you’re right. I will see if she will read with me more,” he sighed, leaning back against the large headboard. From the simple discussion, Nagare could feel how exhausted his body was. He hated being ill, always feeling like he wasn’t long for this world. Simply walking to get a book was a chore. He wanted strength, he wanted to feel like the prince he was supposed to be.

His only hope was Anna and he prayed she would help him when the truth all came out.

~~~

Standing directly across from Kuroh and Shiro, Munakata glanced down at the book in Shiro’s outstretched hand. “Take it,” he smiled. “I think it best if you and Suoh keep this. With the two of you, more shifters and humans can attempt to bond and learn this magic. It won’t do us any good to keep it hidden all the way out here.” 

 Bowing his head, Munakata took the book from Shiro and returned it to his the pocket. “We thank you for your hospitality and for teaching us,” he said. Munakata was thankful Kuroh and Shiro had been welcoming and willing to pass their knowledge on. If they had been against working with them, the whole process would’ve been much harder. “I only wish we could stay longer,” he said with a gentle smile. “Shiro, I am certain there are many spells I could learn from you if we had the time.” If they hadn’t been so pressed Munakata would’ve loved to have stayed and pick at the immortal man’s brain and he believed he and Suoh could still use more training. But after minor discussion, Suoh had decided to consider asking his clansmen for help and the full moon was almost upon them. Without bonds, the other shifters would be unable to shift and Munakata knew Suoh would get restless waiting for the next one. 

“You are always welcome here. Come back whenever you please. Now that you know where it is, it’ll be much easier to fly here,” he smiled. “I do wish you the best of luck,” he said. 

“Thank you, once again, for everything.” With a final bow of their heads, Munakata and Suoh stepped back, the shifter sinking his teeth into Munakata’s wrist as he began to glow, shifting to his dragon form. With a wave, Munakata climbed onto his back, praying that the knowledge and training they'd done would be enough to help them through the upcoming battle.

Returning back to the dragon village proved to be much faster than Munakata expected. Though it took them quite a few days to walk to the location, flying back only took about an hour. Munakata was shocked to see the village appear on the horizon as fast as it did.

Landing in the field only a bit aways from the main town, Munakata slid off of Suoh’s back, running his hand softly down the dragon’s neck. He stepped back and watched as a glowing light engulfed Suoh’s body once again as he shifted back to his human form. 

“That was far faster than I expected it to be,” he said, stretching forward. Though Munakata found it much more comfortable to actually stand on the ground. He could understand the convenience of flying and it did give them quite the advantage in an attack, but still, something about having his feet on the ground was very settling. 

“Flying _does_ makes things faster,” Suoh smirked, nudging the mage slightly as he stepped forward heading back to town. 

“I’m not an idiot, Suoh,” he scoffed. “I’m well aware that flying does indeed make things faster. We have been training together for a good deal of time now and I think I can understand _that_ at the very least”

“Sure, you’re not an idiot,” he shrugged. “Even though you can’t tell when I’m making joke,” he smirked, continuing towards the village. Munakata immediately rolled his eyes, following after his partner. Quite a few shifters were staring at the two of them walking forward, they had obviously created something of a scene.

“KIIINGGGG!” Came a familiar call out, the blond shifter making his way over to them. Closely behind him were Yata and Kusanagi. Once again, Totsuka leapt towards Suoh, hugging him tightly. “How did you _do_ that?!” he asked incredulously, stepping back from the man. 

 “Eh? What?” Suoh muttered. 

“Shift! It’s not the full moon!” Totsuka exclaimed. “Normally we can’t but you did—so how did you…” 

“Ah…” As Suoh trailed off, Munakata glanced over towards the village as he noticed two more familiar figures walking their way. 

“Captain!” Awashima called out, waving with a relieved smile. His eyes widened, seeing his two subordinates here was not something he had expected.  

“Awashima? Fushimi? How did you find me?” he asked, staring at the young mages. “What were you thinking traveling all the way past the mountain!?” 

“Obviously we weren’t,” Fushimi muttered, folding his arms. Awashima rolled her eyes, stepping ahead of Fushimi.

“We weren’t going to leave you, Captain,” she whispered. “We both knew you had to be alive and so we followed the eastern path to the mountain. We went through the mountain underpass-”

“Dealt with disgusting rats too,” Fushimi scoffed. 

“Yes, those,” Awashima wrinkled her nose, eliciting a small laugh from the High Magus. “And we eventually made it here. Kusanagi has been graciously letting us stay at his place. Thank goodness they had seen you and knew who you were. But Captain, never for a minute did I think you were dead,” she said softly. 

Placing a hand on her shoulder, Munakata smiled. “Thank you Awashima, Fushimi. I appreciate you both risking your lives to come here and find me. Next time I would prefer it if you didn’t put your lives on the line for me, but it is very relieving to see you both here,” he chuckled. 

“Idiot,” Fushimi muttered. “Do you really think Awashima or…myself would really let you go so easily?” 

“Well I would think you wouldn’t be so foolish to start a quest you may not be able to finish but this time it did work out quite well for all of us. I am very glad you are safe,” he smiled. 

“We are glad _you’re_ safe,” Awashima sighed. His expression changed, his brow furrowing. 

 “Has Kusanagi told you any of what is going on?” he asked softly. 

Lowering her eyes, Awashima nodded. “Yes, he told us of the princess and her origins. He told us you and the Red Dragon went off in search of ancient magic. Sir, what do you plan to do?” she asked. 

Glancing towards Suoh, the mage and the dragon shifter locked eyes and nodded. 

“I can shift because Munakata and I are bonded,” Suoh began. 

Blushing, Yata practically jumped back, covering his mouth. “W-What does that mean!?” he exclaimed, his gaze darting back and forth between the mage and the shifter. Kusanagi pushed his face, knocking him to the side. 

“Don’t be a perverted idiot,” Kusanagi scoffed. 

“Hey! I wasn’t being a pervert!” Yata yelled.

“No, of course not. How could such a stupid virgin be a pervert?” Fushimi chuckled, glaring at the shorter shifter. 

“This definitely doesn’t involve you _human_!” Yata scoffed. 

“Boys, please,” Awashima sighed. “We should be thankful that both of them are here and alive and maybe we should give them the chance to explain what they meant,” she said calmly.

Heading back towards the village, Munakata began to explain how he and Suoh had travelled together, finding the small cabin in the woods where they had met Kuroh and Shiro. “The bond is simply a form of magic. Suoh and I share magical energy and when he drinks some of my blood, he can transform at will. It does make us both stronger,” he said. Once they were all inside Kusanagi’s house, they sat around the table and the mage continued the story. He explained how he discovered the text in the library which had led them to the two immortals. He mentioned the ritual and how Suoh and he had trained together, but knew they had to return for the full moon. “Eventually,” he sighed, “I’d like to see this be the start of positive relations between dragon shifters and humans once again, but for now the most important thing is getting Anna back here,” he said. 

“I think it could be,” Awashima said, smiling. For a moment, her eyes fell on Kusanagi. “Fushimi and I—well—myself at least, have been having a wonderful time here. The shifters are quite hospitable.” Standing up, she glanced towards Munakata. “I would like to help. Obviously we would not have time to create bonds with shifters ourselves, but Fushimi and I are capable mages and perhaps we could figure out someway for us to fight together.” 

Standing up with her, Kusanagi nodded. “Though Mikoto has the ability to shift at will now, if we wait a few days for the full moon, we could all fight together. I’d like to help as well. We’ve been offering for months now.” Suoh grunted and Munakata knew he didn’t like entertaining the idea of letting his clansmen fight too. Munakata couldn’t act as though he was perfectly happy with his own subordinates joining in, however, they were capable people and he knew they could help as well.

“Yeah, you know I’ve been itching for a fight, Mikoto!” Yata said, rubbing his hands together. 

“I suppose I could help out as well. We’ve come this far…” Fushimi scoffed.

“Geez, don’t force yourself,” Yata muttered, earning him a sharp glare from the dark-haired mage. 

“No way,” Suoh muttered. “Munakata and I bonded for a reason. We can handle this.” Suoh had been considering it before, but perhaps seeing his friends had changed his mind.

Flicking his gaze up to his shifter, Munakata folded one leg over the other, cupping his hands over his knee. “While I would like to agree, it would perhaps be smart to fight on the night of the full moon. Even with our bond, you are more powerful then. If we were to go now, we should assume the King will be expecting us and the more power we have the better.

With a sigh, Suoh pushed himself off of the wall and folded his arms. “Fine. But no way in hell am I letting Totsuka go.”

“What! Why?!” Totsuka pouted, folding his arms. 

“You’re one of the weakest shifters here. Your first shift…your body barely made it out unscathed,” Suoh said. “There are two mages here and we can pair up.” Though he sighed heavily, it was clear Totsuka wasn’t going to argue with Suoh.  “Ah yes,” Munakata muttered, resting his hand over his mouth. “Even un-bonded, having the mages pair up with a shifter would be best—for flying purposes alone,” he chuckled. “Awashima can go with Kusanagi and Fushimi with Yata.” 

“What?! Why do I have to pair up with him?!” Yata yelled.

“Yata, don’t complain,” Kusanagi sighed.

“You’re just happy because you get to be with the beautiful woman you’ve been non-stop hitting on ever since she got here!” he snapped, and both Kusanagi and Awashima blushed. 

Ignoring the protests, Munakata glanced towards Suoh. “We only have a few days until the full moon, so we’ll have to prepare. Awashima and Fushimi can fly with me to practice. It can be rather jarring,” he laughed. “Make sure you get lots of rest in the next few days. We’ll need to be completely energized and ready for a battle. I know the King will be expecting us,” he said, trailing off slowly. 

 He was thankful for the bond he and Suoh shared and he was incredibly relieved to see his mages well and alive. Now, they had even more combined strength and he only hoped their power would be enough to face whatever the King had waiting for them.

~~~

“I wish I could say I’m surprised but I’m not,” Iwafune muttered taking a large gulp of his wine. Sitting in his private study, Hirasaka had explained the situation she had witness in the dragon village. 

“I’m not sure if their bond is completed or not, but when I was there, they had been gone for a few days in search of the original shifter and mage pair,” she explained, swirling the glass of her own drink around. 

“Their bond is complete,” he whispered. “There is absolutely no doubt in my mind. The Red Dragon is extremely powerful and so is the High Magus. It’s possible their magic rejected each other but I find that hard to believe. We should assume they are bonded and could attack any day now,” Iwafune muttered. He didn’t want to deal with the powerful duo nor did he want to deal with Nagare’s reaction, seeing as Munakata and the shifter never would have met had it not been for him.

Hirasaka had done her job and done it well; retrieving the information he had been terrified to receive. He was impressed by how fast she had travelled back to him. However, he was thankful the woman was so efficient with her job, if only she could have brought better news. 

“Are you going to tell him?” 

“I’m going to have to. Nagare is not going to be pleased when he learns they’ve bonded,” he sighed. “For many reasons.” 

“Mm,” she mumbled. “I wish I could’ve delivered better news.”

“It’s fine. I’ve been preparing to deal with this ever since the Red Dragon kidnapped Munakata Reisi,” he admitted. It was his fault and he would have to deal with the repercussion of it. “We’ll have to prepare, get the army ready and stationed. I’ll need to let them know we should be ready for an attack any day now. On top of that, it’s possible I will have to…” he trailed off. The silence in the room was heavy, both knowing Iwafune’s couldn’t speak on the subject further.

“Will he allow that?” she asked softly. 

“I will speak to Nagare. He said it was only to be something I employed during our most desperate times and right now it may be my only choice,” he whispered. “Even against a bonded pair it might not be enough, especially if they attack sooner,” he admitted, chugging down the rest of his wine. He didn’t want to fall on his last resort, but he feared he may have no other option.

~~~

They only had a few days before the next full moon and Munakata wanted to use them wisely, hoping to spend the majority of the time aiding Awashima and Fushimi with flying. After the first time, Awashima had taken to it rather easily. Fushimi, however, was the opposite. After his first flight, he had never been more thankful to touch ground, almost passing out like Munakata had. Of course, this led to teasing from Yata. Fushimi begged to switched partners, but unfortunately for him, there weren’t any other options, since Awashima and Kusanagi seemed to be getting along well. 

The next few times went practically the same, though Fushimi did improve. He could step off of Suoh’s back and not wobble around completely now. But there was a small amount of uncertainty in his eyes when he went to cast a spell, though Munakata knew the mage would never admit to being unsure.

“I promise you’ll get it,” Munakata said once they were back on the ground, to which Fushimi responded by clicking his tongue and storming off back to the room he was staying in at Kusanagi’s. 

Shifting back, Suoh rubbed the back of his neck and stretched his arms way up. “Never shifted so many times in a row,” he grunted. 

“Ah, I’m sorry. Is it difficult doing it so much?” Munakata asked, stepping towards the shifter. Suoh’s eyes flicked to Munakata’s wrist, knowing the shifting was much more tiring on his body than Suoh’s. 

“Nah,” he replied softly, bringing his hand up to stroke at Munakata’s hair. “S’fine…” he muttered. Blushing, the mage shut his eyes, resting his cheek against Suoh’s fingers. When had Suoh become so gentle and caring?

“It’s also important to keep in mind,” Kusanagi said, folding his arms. “Seri and Fushimi will be flying with Yata and I and we may fly differently. So if you both need a break, it would be fine to take one.” 

Stepping away from Suoh, Munakata agreed. “Mm…that is true, but it’s better to have them at least a little prepared. Besides, I don’t think it’s us that need a break,” he chuckled softly, watching Fushimi walk away.

Much to Fushimi’s dismay, they spent the last few days in the village training. Munakata wished they had more time, but he knew Suoh was anxious to attempt to try again. Depending on how long they waited it was possible the King would launch an attack first. Munakata didn’t know enough about the King to predict how he would act. If he was truly concerned about keeping Anna, anything was possible.

Though he was sleeping in Suoh’s bed, Munakata found it was impossible to get a good night sleep. He had hoped that having an actual comfortable bed to sleep in would help. Instead, he constantly worried about the upcoming battle—how Fushimi and Awashima would fare with Yata and Kusanagi, if the King would be waiting for them, if he and Suoh would truly be strong enough after all was said and done. 

Now, the evening before, he was tossing and turning more than ever. Rolling over, Suoh locked his arms around his waist, burying his nose against Munakata’s bare shoulder. 

 “Oi,” he whispered, his voice scratchy and tired. Munakata could tell he had awoken the shifter, a rather triumphant feat since Suoh seemed to be able to sleep anywhere.

“Mmm…I apologize, Suoh,” he muttered. “I woke you up.” 

“Yup,” Suoh whispered against his skin. “You’re worrying about tomorrow.”

“Are you not?” Munakata asked, running his fingers down Suoh’s spine.

“Nope. Sleepin’,” he mumbled, his lips pressed to the mage’s shoulder. Sighing, Munakata pressed his own to Suoh’s forehead and turned around, moving close to the dragon shifter. 

“I don’t know how you do that,” he chuckled. Moving his hand to Munakata’s waist, Suoh let out a gentle huff. 

“Do what?” 

“Sleep so easily,” he muttered. “I’m jealous.” His eyes fluttered open and stared at Munakata’s purples. 

“I dunno. I just get into bed and it’s comfortable. You’re warm next to me and I sleep,” he shrugged tiredly. 

“But we’ve been preparing for tomorrow for so long and I keep wondering if everything will go as we’ve planned it,” he whispered. Squeezing his hip gently, Suoh yawned and lazily planted a kiss on his lips. 

“I’m sure we’ll be fine. The past few times I’ve gone alone, but this time we’re going together and we’re bringing the others. We’ll be fine,” he mumbled, his breathing grew deeper as his eyes stayed shut and his mouth open ever so slightly. Letting out a soft sigh, Munakata could tell Suoh had already fallen asleep. How the shifter fell asleep so quickly was completely beyond the mage—a strange magic Munakata would never understand. 

“I suppose I should get used to you falling asleep on me,” he whispered, kissing Suoh’s forehead. He couldn’t help but admit that sleeping next to Suoh did make him warmer. His eyes slowly drooped shut, exhausted from how little sleep he had gotten lately. Munakata could hear his breath flowing gently from between his lips and as he placed his hand on Suoh’s chest, he could feel the light thump of his heartbeat. 

Tomorrow they would go to battle together and Munakata silently prayed everyone would make it out alive.

 ~~~

When Munakata awoke, he found himself alone in Suoh’s bed, which, as always, didn’t surprise him. During the past few weeks with Suoh, he had learned so much about the shifter so quickly. It almost felt strange to imagine his life _without_ the shifter at this point. Groaning, he stepped out of bed and stretched up. They didn’t have much time to waste, as the shifters could change the moment the moon began to rise in the sky. Once they could shift, they could leave.

He changed into his robes and pulled on his long blue cloak and gloves. He was the most prepared of the three knights heading into battle, though he trusted Awashima and Fushimi to fight by his side, even with Fushimi’s incessant groaning. 

Heading downstairs, he was surprised to find Suoh’s house empty, though he supposed he must’ve went to Kusanagi’s for breakfast. Suoh seemed to rely on his best friend for food quite often. However as he stepped out of the small house, he noticed how high in the sky the sun was. Perhaps he had slept much longer than he thought, his inability to sleep for the past few evenings finally catching up with him. 

Making his way to the other man’s house, he could hear the noise coming from inside—Totsuka and Yata’s voices were the loudest. It sounded as though everyone had gathered together for one final meal before the battle. Stepping inside, he was surprised to see Awashima, hair down, helping Kusanagi in the kitchen. While everyone else, including Fushimi, was seated at the table. 

“Ah! Good morning, Sir. Happy to see you’re awake,” Awashima smiled, turning around at the sink. 

“Good morning,” he nodded, taking a seat next to Suoh. 

“I didn’t wanna wake ya’ up,” he muttered. “You were actually sleeping heavily. Kind of cute,” he teased as he spoke in a hushed whisper. 

“I highly doubt it was cute,” he scoffed, folding his arms at the table. It was nice, being surrounded by so much happy noise during this last meal, even Fushimi spoke up a few times, though mostly he watched as the conversations floated around him cheerfully. 

After the warm meal, the group made their way to the field where they had been training. The sun had begun to set; the evening soon to be upon them. Yata was bouncing on his toes, much to Fushimi’s annoyance, and even Kusanagi looked a bit antsy. Totsuka had said goodbye back at the house and made it clear he would be very upset and disappointed if they didn’t all come back in one piece. Suoh had reassured him they would and from the look on his face, Munakata believed him.

“We should assume the King will be expecting us,” Munakata began. “But I do have faith in this group. I…I am very grateful to you all for being willing to help us. None of you had to, but you are,” he said, bowing his head. 

Placing a hand on his shoulder, Suoh let out a small grunt. “I don’t think I ever thanked _you_ ,” he muttered. 

“Oh?” Munakata said quietly, glancing around to look at him.

“Yeah. You took it on yourself to do this for us—you didn’t have to. You’ve given up your life as you knew it to be bonded to me to make us stronger, all to get _our_ girl back,” he said. “I appreciate that,” he muttered. 

“Well, I’m simply doing the right thing,” he said softly, taking his hand. “And being bonded to you…doesn’t seem so bad,” he smiled. 

Wrapping an arm around Munakata’s waist, Suoh pulled him close, pressing his lips against the mage’s. Running his hand through Munakata’s hair, Suoh’s eyes locked on his. “Still I’m grateful,” he whispered. “Thank you. I promise to do my best to keep us safe.” 

Blushing, Munakata tucked his head under Suoh’s and smiled. “I trust you.” 

Yata’s legs shook and he jumped behind Fushimi, pressing against his back. “Did…did they just kiss?!” 

“Tsk. Have you never seen two people kiss before? You really are a virgin,” he scoffed, folding his arms. “Are you going to be able to handle this fight, Yata?” he asked, his voice a bit softer, turning his head to glance down at the boy. 

Jumping back from him and blushing slightly, he frowned angrily. “Of course I will!” he growled. “Don’t underestimate me, stupid human!” he yelled, turning away from the other boy. 

“Right. Excuse me for losing faith in a child who can’t even look at two people kissing,” he grumbled. 

Kusanagi and Awashima glanced at each other and smiled. Thankfully, they seemed to be getting along with one another just fine. 

“Are you ready?” Munakata asked. Unwrapping the bandage around the small area of his wrist, he held up to Suoh.

“I am,” Suoh nodded, pressing his lips to the skin. As he pierced the spot, Munakata let out a soft grunt, feeling Suoh Stepping back, a familiar light surrounded Suoh’s body as he began his shift. Flicking his gaze to the side, Munakata noticed the lights surrounding Kusanagi and Yata too, as their own transformations began. Their battle was about to begin. 

As Suoh landed in front of him—fully transformed into his dragon form—he pressed his snout against Munakata’s outstretched palm, huffing out a gentle puff of smoke. Munakata smiled, there was something so comforting about Suoh’s dragon shape. It was so inherently him, powerful and comforting—it was as though Munakata had been waiting his whole life to experience this bond with this creature. 

Climbing onto Suoh’s back, he turned to face the others. Kusanagi was a large yellow dragon, roughly the size of Suoh, his scales shimmering in the fading sunlight. Munakata was pleased to see Awashima climb on his back with ease; those two had worked out surprisingly well.

Yata and Fushimi on the other hand…

Yata was a smaller dragon, orange in color. Upon finishing his transformation, he immediately roared loudly, flapping his wings intensely, causing Fushimi to almost fall over from the sheer force the smaller dragon had used. Shaking his head, Munakata watched as Fushimi adjusted his robes and climbed onto Yata’s back. The mage, while appearing to look slightly frustrated, clung to Yata’s neck with a subtle desperation.

Once he felt they were ready, Munakata gave the signal and they took to the sky. He knew getting to the castle would take a bit of time. While flying he shut his eyes, letting the wind flow through his hair, his palms rest on the red scales of Suoh’s back, gently running his fingertips over the skin. He wished he could hear Suoh’s thoughts—that they could have a way to communicate when he was shifted like this, but it was simply because he was starting to overthink about the battle. 

It took almost two hours of flying before the castle came into view, the tall gray spires shooting up towards the sky. He glanced at his fellow mages, nodding. 

“Prepare for battle!” he called out, unsheathing his sword while Awashima and Fushimi did the same.

It was just as he had suspected, the King was waiting for them. The lower they flew, the clearer the castle came into perspective. Lined along the upper wall were marksmen, holding bows and arrows at the ready position. If they had any sort of magical ability, Munakata couldn’t tell, but he could only imagine the damage an arrow could do to a dragon if shot in the proper spot. 

“Prepare to evade!” he called out, the men raising their arrows as he did. “Suoh,” he yelled. “You have to get me, Awashima and Fushimi to the castle grounds—that balcony we fought on is preferable. We will have a much better chance of finding Anna that way. The more soldiers you can take out the better, but _try_ not to destroy the town,” he barked. 

All at once, the arrows flew to the sky, Munakata gripping onto Suoh’s back as he moved towards the side. The dragon dove, attempting to avoid the shots. Glancing directly down towards the balcony, Munakata realized they were going to have to jump to the edge. There was no way they could get close enough with the arrows shooting in their direction. The dragons weren’t small targets either, it was a miracle none of them had been hit yet.

Arrows were flying sporadically now, making it increasingly difficult for the dragons to avoid. The closer they got to the castle, the more worried Munakata grew. Yata let out a large roar when an arrow clipped into his tail. Swinging his tail around in an attempt to toss the arrow out, he shot a long burst of flame towards the long row of shooters. Screams were heard as men dove out of the way, some plummeting over the edge. Fushimi clung to Yata’s back, desperately holding on. 

“Idiot!” he yelled. “We’re not attacking yet! Don’t get so damn worked up because you were hit!” Fushimi snapped. 

“Attack!” Munakata called out. He hadn’t wanted to attack so quickly, but Yata had left him with no choice. He ran his fingers over the blade in his hand, covering it in ice. Awashima and Fushimi did the same—using the techniques they had been practicing over the past few days. Swinging their swords up, then across, the three mages sent a large force of ice magic towards some of the archers. There was a rumble as the magic hit what seemed to be a barrier. The vibration knocked a few of the archers back, though many of them didn’t seem phased.

“Again!” Awashima called out. The three mages raised their swords, swinging an ice attack towards the barrier, but again, the shield blocked anything from breaking through. 

“Damn!” Fushimi scoffed, pounding his fist down on Yata’s neck. Munakata looked between the two and then turned his gaze down to Suoh. When Yata had shot a flame, the barrier hadn’t activated. This meant they simply needed to use the dragons’ flames to attack.

“Damn,” Munakata muttered under his breath, copying Fushimi’s sentiment. “We’re going to have to jump when we get close!” he called out. Dipping down, Suoh moved to the side, moving faster than Munakata had expected him to. The closer the balcony drew, he realized the King stood at the entrance to the large bedroom. “Suoh! I’m going to jump. Circle back and avoid the arrows for as long as you can. Try and take out as many of the guards as possible! Only dragon flames will work against that barrier!” he called out, leaping from Suoh’s back as he landed on the balcony, ducking down to one knee. 

Slowly rising, he turned behind him as Kusanagi dove down towards the balcony, Awashima gracefully rolling off his back to land next to Munakata. Even Fushimi who jumped from Yata’s back rather quickly, landed decently enough, standing beside the other mages. 

“Ah, Munakata! It seems you’re alright!” King Iwafune chuckled, stepping towards them. 

Munakata held up his palm, stopping the other man from speaking. “Please, Iwafune, there is absolutely no need for you to pretend right now. I am no fool. We know what you’ve done,” he said, holding his icy saber out towards the man. 

“Ah—it was worth a shot,” he sighed. “And here I thought you were on my side.” 

“I was,” Munakata frowned. “Until I learned what you did. Then I no longer wanted to serve an unjust King such as yourself. Where is Anna?” 

A laugh escaped Iwafune’s lips. “Do you really think I would simply _give_ that information to you?” he asked. 

The three mages frowned, standing in a row with swords drawn. Both Awashima and Fushimi glanced towards Munakata, waiting for his signal. 

“Tell us where you’ve hidden the girl. If you give her back, perhaps we could work out some sort of deal…” he began slowly, but Iwafune continued to laugh over him. Cries of the dragons rang out behind him, and for a split second Munakata glanced back, flames firing over their heads.

“Unfortunately,” Iwafune said, taking a step back. “There’s no way _he_ will allow that,” he whispered. “You’ll never find her here. But I do wish you the best of luck,” he grinned. 

“What?” Munakata asked, confused as Iwafune stepped back even more. Horns pushed out through his hair and gray markings slowly appeared down his cheeks and neck. “Shifter,” Munakata hissed, charging forward with his sword, Awashima and Fushimi close behind him. Before they could even reach the man, a bright light wrapped itself around his body. In mere seconds wings folded out from the light, a gray dragon shooting up towards the sky with a loud roar. The three mages fell to the ground, the sheer force of his wings and the wind blowing downwards as he took to the sky. 

 There was silence as Munakata pushed himself back up. As shocked as they were, he knew they had to find Anna. The faster they did that, the faster this fight would end. Munakata could only hope the three others could handle it. 

“Come on,” he said, standing up. “We have to find the princess.” 

~~~

In the small room with Nagare, Anna lay next to him, panting. Everything hurt. Her back, her head and her body swirled with a heavy pressure she’d never felt before. 

“What’s wrong, Anna?” Nagare asked, gently stroking her hair. 

“I don’t know…” she whispered. “It hurts.” Her small hand clung to Nagare’s sleeve, her face flushed. “Why does the Red Dragon want me so badly?” she asked quietly. 

“We do not know,” Nagare lied, though he was starting to grow concerned. Iwafune hadn’t come back yet and from the sounds which shook the walls of the castle, Nagare had a feeling he wouldn’t be coming back anytime soon. And Anna—she was clearly reaching the point where she needed to transform. Was she really going through puberty at such a young age? He supposed dragons really did age differently than humans, but he hadn’t expected it to be this soon. Perhaps the Red Dragon’s appearance had set something off in her body. 

“I don’t feel well,” she said softly. “Is this how Nagare always feels?” she asked, her red eyes staring up at him. He despised when she looked at him with such gentleness, it almost made him feel guilty for wanting to use her for the power which lay dormant inside of her.

“Sometimes, yes,” he said. “Anna, if there was a way for you to help me,” he asked. “Would you do it?” 

Blinking, the small girl pushed herself up. “Of course I would.” She winced and fell against him. “I’m sorry Nagare,” she said quietly. “I’m supposed to be strong for you, but right now I feel nothing but weak,” she said, her voice trembling the more she spoke. 

“Shh,” he hushed. “There is no need to force yourself to do more than you are.” The building shook, and Nagare’s eyes glanced upwards. What the hell was happening out there? There was a loud crash and he could tell something collided with the tower his room was at the bottom of. “Anna,” he whispered, hurriedly. “Let’s go. We have to get out of this tower,” he said, shaking her gently. 

Though it was clear the girl was in pain, she nodded slowly, stepping out the bed. 

“Can you walk, Nagare?” she asked, her own legs shaking. As Nagare stepped out of the bed, he nodded.

“Let’s go up to our father’s study,” he whispered, taking her hand as he moved them as fast as he could out of the small room. If the castle was collapsing, Nagare feared the Red Dragon was doing more damage than he thought. 

Squeezing Anna’s hand, the two made their way up the stairs as fast as they could. Ultimately, the time would come when she would have to make her choice and he prayed she would stay true to the words she had spoken. 

~~~

The unfamiliar roar filled the air causing Suoh, Kusanagi, and Yata to stop in the sky—barely avoiding arrows which had shot in their direction. The King had a shifter on his side? Or had Anna already gone through her first transformation? As the gray form flew up to the sky, it rammed into Suoh’s side, sending the red dragon backwards in the air. This was definitely not Anna.

Seeing their leader careening backwards, Yata and Kusanagi charged towards the gray dragon, biting down on his tail and wing. Though the gray dragon tossed his neck back, he let out a large screech, chucking Yata back towards the castle. The orange creature hit against the stone, toppling the tip of the tower to the ground. Yelping in pain, Yata dropped towards the ground, a glowing light surrounding his body as he lost the consciousness, unable to hold his dragon form. 

With a roar, Suoh glanced to Kusanagi, who dove down to catch Yata as his body fell. The two fell downwards, zooming towards the ground as Kusanagi pulled up at the last minute. He zoomed towards the balcony, landing on the edge. Slowly lowering the boy to the ground, he changed back to his human form, the golden light surrounding his body as he shifted.

 “Yata!” he called. “Yata, are you okay?” he asked. Though the boy did not answer, his eyes fluttered slightly and Kusanagi thankfully could see his chest move shallowly with small labored breaths. 

“Shit,” Kusanagi cursed, hoping Suoh could handle the strange gray dragon on his own. 

Suoh, noting his friends had fallen to safety, roared at the gray dragon, charging forward. He had no idea who it was the King had brought to his side. But if the other shifter was going to be hostile, Suoh would be hostile back. Roaring, he charged forward, head butting the other dragon. The gray dragon fell backwards, shaking his head as he regained himself. Moving forward, his teeth buried into Suoh’s shoulder. Clawing down the other dragon’s back, Suoh’s roar echoed through the sky as he swung his tail up, smacking the gray dragon backwards. Suoh shot a large burst of fire towards his opponent, however, the gray dragon dodged.

The air filled with the sound of cries and painful screeches as the two flew at each other repeatedly, attacking over and over. Bites and scratches and shots of flames tossed about through the air, the two dragons twirling around each other. 

Finally, Suoh flew forward, clamping his teeth down onto one of the enemy dragon’s wings. The creature screeched into the air and the two plummeted down towards the large balcony. 

~~~

While the dragons fought, Munakata charged through the castle, in hopes of finding Anna. If they could find the princess, they could escape and reduce the risk of any injuries. Just as they turned down a long corridor, a large pain shot up his side and he fell to one knee, his hand trembling. 

“Sir!” Awashima cried out, stopping short to kneel by his side. “Are you okay? What’s wrong?” she asked, looking him over to see what could’ve possibly caused the man pain.

“It’s…It’s Suoh,” he coughed, taking in air. “Our pain is connected,” he whispered, shakily standing up.

“Well then we should find Anna fast,” Awashima said, noting their Captain didn’t look so good. “Sir, can you walk?” 

“I’m fine, Awashima,” he said, stepping forward. 

“When we stayed here, there seemed to be extra rooms in the eastern tower. It’s possible there could be places there to hide the Princess,” Fushimi said, gesturing towards the long hallway. A large rumbled sounded from the direction Fushimi had pointed in and the three mages looked up, attempting to see if they could discover the source of the noise. 

After a long moment of silence, Munakata spoke. “Good observation, Fushimi,” Munakata huffed, making his way down the hall. His body was throbbing with pain and the jolts on his muscles kept getting larger. Suoh was most likely fighting with Iwafune and he prayed the shifter was alright.

“A-Ah!” Gripping his neck, Munakata gasped, feeling the pain shooting down under his skin. His body lurched forward and he attempted to stay standing. “As a dragon he is much tougher, but I don’t think he realizes how sharp his pain is to me, a mere human,” Munakata said, shaking his head.

“Sir, perhaps we should turn back—I don’t think this way is safe and you…” Awashima muttered, noting the light shaking of the floor under their feet. 

“We have to search every area until we find her,” Munakata said. “I’m not leaving this castle until we do.”

 “Sir, please, be reasonable. I don’t think Suoh would want to find her at the expense of you!” she exclaimed quickly.

As if appearing on cue, the young girl and a green-haired male stepped out from behind one of the large suits of armor which lined the hallway. 

“Anna!” Munakata called out. The young girl turned her head around fast, a small smile appearing on her face. As she moved slowly towards the mage, he could tell she wasn’t quite herself. Her face was paler than normal and her legs shook as she walked closer to him. 

“Anna, wait!” The dark-haired male called to her. Frowning, Munakata stepped forward and took her hand, glaring at the boy in front of him. He had no idea who the young man was, but he could only assume he was another part of Iwafune’s plan. 

“Brother,” she smiled, turning around. “It’s okay, Reisi will help us. He’s working for Father. I’m glad you’re alright,” she said gently. Her breathing was shallow and small beads of sweat dripped down the side of her neck.

Brother? Just who was this boy? “Anna, wait!” he called out, walking after her slowly. He also didn’t look to be in good health either. 

The castle shook once again and the three mages glanced around. “I don’t know who you are, but I believe it’s time for us all to move out of this area,” Munakata called out. Kneeling down, Munakata picked up the small girl. “Are _you_ alright, Anna?” he asked, as he began to head back in the direction of her large room. The dark-haired boy reluctantly followed after them. 

She shook her head. “I think I may be sick,” she frowned. “My brother was taking care of me.” Glancing behind himself, Munakata stared at the boy who had followed them. He was glaring daggers at the mage, but based on how slowly he moved, Munakata could only assume he was too weak to actually attempt any sort of attack. 

As the group stepped into the young girl’s room, there was a loud crash as the two dragons landed on the balcony.

 “Iwafune!” the dark-haired male called out.

The gray dragon attempted to bite at Suoh, but when he missed, he instead pushed him off his body with a kick of his legs and soared back towards the sky. As Suoh fell backwards, Munakata placed Anna on the ground, charging forward towards his partner. “Awashima! Stay with Anna!” he called back. “Suoh!” he yelled and ran towards the balcony. In a swift movement, Suoh turned around, flying towards the edge and landing. Munakata climbed on to Suoh’s back, gripping his neck as he drew his saber.

“Let’s do it, Suoh,” he muttered, taking in a large breath of air as they flew to the sky. Feeling his and Suoh’s magic pulsating in his chest, Munakata wondered if he could use both at the same time. He had yet to try it, but now seemed like as a good a time as any. Placing his fingers on the blade, he covered it with a mix of ice and fire magic, creating a blue flame. “Amazing,” he whispered, watching the flame flicker around his sword.

As the gray dragon charged forward, Munakata flicked his wrist, shooting a large burst of the blue flame from his sword in the direction of the King. Not expecting the large attack, the dragon hurled backwards, his wing catching the flame. Suoh charged forward and bit into the dragon’s shoulder, until the gray creature shot fire from his mouth, clipping the side of Suoh’s wing. Gasping, Munakata felt his fingers burn, the skin on his tips throbbing painfully. 

“Ah, Suoh!” he cried, wondering if the dragon was okay. However, Suoh seemed to be flying just fine. Fire boiled in Suoh’s throat, shooting a burst of flames at the gray dragon. Shortly following, Munakata swirled his sword in a circle, sending a powerful combination spell of ice and fire, hitting Iwafune directly in the chest with both attacks. Together they _were_ much stronger it seemed.

The spells, though effective, angered the gray dragon, who dashed forward and clawed at Suoh’s snout. Dodging, Suoh slashed his own talons towards Iwafune, who also moved backwards, evading the attack. Holding on to Suoh’s neck, Munakata balanced as best he could, moving with Suoh’s unstable dodging movements. Coating his sword in magic again, he kicked against Suoh, directing him to fly to the side. As he did, Munakata thrust his sword into the King’s wing, slashing it downward, creating a long slash in the wing of the dragon.

The gray dragon let out a long cry, falling backwards towards the castle. Suoh flew forward and kicked him down towards the balcony, flying to the ground. The two followed quickly after the gray dragon. 

A large glowing light was seen, as Iwafune returned to his human form; his body bloody and bruised, laying on the balcony. Suoh now had him pinned to the ground, a roar rumbling in his throat. 

Slipping off of Suoh’s back, Munakata huffed out a large sigh, relieved to be back on the ground. They had won. A ball of light wrapped itself around Suoh’s body as the Red Dragon slowly transformed back into his own human form. “Bastard,” he hissed, wobbling backwards. His face was almost as red as his hair and blood trickled down his neck.  

“Suoh,” Munakata whispered, stepping towards him. He placed a hand on Suoh’s chest, steadying his movements. He had been far more injured than he had let on in his dragon from. 

Her eyes widened as the girl watched both creatures transform back into humans. “Father!?” Anna yelled softly, leaving Nagare’s side to race to the King. Collapsing by Iwafune’s, her body trembled as tears began to fall from her eyes. “Father, what happened? What…what are you?” she whispered.

 “Don’t say a word,” Nagare hissed, leaning against the glass door. The walk had clearly taken a great deal out of the boy. 

“It’s too late, Nagare. We’re overpowered. If we don’t say now, Anna is going to have more problems. Eventually she will realize and maybe choose to leave us anyway,” Iwafune chuckled softly. 

 “Father…” Anna whispered. “What’s going on?” 

 “Anna—I’m going to tell you the truth and I need you to listen to me,” he began. The silver haired girl nodded slowly, clutching the man’s hand. “You’re a shifter—a dragon shifter. Like me, like these people here. Though you are not my real daughter. I took you at a young age—away from your true clan.” 

The silver-haired girl shook her head. “No, that’s not possible. You’re my father. You always have been.” 

Iwafune chuckled. “Of course you will think that. Douhan took you when you were only just a baby.” 

“But why,” Suoh grunted, interrupting the man. “Why did you take her from us? If you’re a shifter, you must know our numbers are dwindling…” he muttered. 

“Your…numbers?” Anna asked softly. 

“Yes, shifters are going extinct,” Munakata replied. Anna’s eyes trembled as she attempted to process the information.

“It was for Nagare,” Iwafune said, glancing to the boy shaking against the door. “I was purchased by his parents as a young teen to be Nagare’s caretaker. They had hoped we could bond together, making their sickly son immortal. At first I was apprehensive but as time went on the small child was so endearing I…I fell for him as though he were my own son,” he spoke slowly. “When they died, they had it set so it seemed as though I were their son and heir to the throne, hiding Nagare away until we could attempt the ritual together. However, when I was finally old enough to try, our magic rejected each other and we were unable to complete the ritual,” he admitted. “When I heard of Anna’s birth, I thought of it as a chance to try again.” 

Tears fell down Anna’s cheeks as she listened to the man’s story. “Father,” she whispered. “I don’t understand.” 

“Shifters have the ability to change into dragons on the night of the full moon. However, if bonded to a human, dragons can change whenever they want, with help from their human. If the bond is strong enough, you and your human have the potential to become immortal. Nagare was hoping to bond with you when the time came,” he explained softly. “But now it seems you’re going through changes faster than expected. Your body—are you in pain?” he asked. 

Slowly she nodded her head. “A…A bit, but I have so many questions!” Glancing towards Suoh, Iwafune shook his head. 

“You need to experience your first shift. Let the Red Dragon help you…” 

Stepping forward towards the young girl, Suoh knelt down in front of her. “Anna,” he whispered. Clutching a hand to her chest, she took a small step back, her body trembling in front of him. “My name is Suoh Mikoto. I’m a dragon shifter, just like you, and I want to help you. Do you think you can trust me?” he asked, holding his palm out to her. 

“Mikoto,” she whispered and touched his cheek instead, shutting her eyes. Her body’s trembling slowed and her red hues met his amber. “I…I think I can. You seem like a good person,” she whispered. “And Father said you could help me.”

“I can,” he said. “Your body is wanting to transform. I need you to close your eyes and allow it. It’s okay to be a little scared, but you need to allow your wings to spread. The magic will show you what to do and I will transform with you, so you are not alone.” 

Making a move to be at his side, Munakata stepped forward, holding his wrist up. The shifter held up a hand and shook his head. He didn’t need Munakata to transform under the full moon and this was something he wanted to do alone—with the girl who had been taken from his home. 

Stepping back from him, Anna shut her eyes and took a deep breath. As she did the soft light began to form around her body and Suoh’s did the same. A pair of silver wings sprouted from the light as the girl’s body shifted slowly, horns curling out of the tip of her head and silver markings spreading over her body. Suoh’s light changed much quicker, the wings shooting out just as they always did. When both lights faded, Suoh floated in front of the smaller silver dragon. A huff of smoke puffed through his nostrils as he flapped his wings and roared. He tilted his neck, as if asking Anna to follow him.

The two moved up to the sky, a dance of red and silver floating through the stars. Suoh flew around her, leading the tinier dragon after him as they flew about in the moonlight—their wings moving and bodies twirling as they floated in the midnight air.

Glancing up, Munakata watched them. He leaned back against the balcony wall and sighed. They had done it. Somehow, they had helped Anna.

“Kusanagi!” Awashima called out, Fushimi and her rushing to where he sat with Yata’s un-moving form.

“Is he…” Fushimi whispered, but Kusanagi quickly shook his head. 

“He’s fine, though he did crash into the eastern spire,” he whispered. 

Scoffing, Fushimi rubbed his forehead. “Idiot. No wonder it fell…” he groaned, though the others could see the mage was slightly relieved. 

Hobbling to Iwafune’s side, Nagare sighed. “You’re insufferable…” he grunted, taking the man’s hand. “I don’t know what I’m supposed to do now.”

“I know, my prince,” he chuckled, sitting up slightly. “It seems I haven’t done a great job as your caretaker.” 

“You’ve done fine. I need to stop thinking of my plans as foolproof,” he said softly. 

After a short while flying, the two dragons returned back to the balcony, their bodies lighting up as they shifted back to their human forms. Small silver horns rested on Anna’s head, and the gentle silver markings around her eyes glistened in the moonlight. Turning to Suoh, Anna’s pale face turned a gentle red as she took his hand. “Thank you,” she whispered. 

Suoh bowed his head to her. “You’re welcome. We would like you to come back to our village and live as you were supposed to. However, this is your choice. If you would like to stay with these people so be it. But you could help us bring back hope to our dwindling clan.” 

Glancing to the two men she had spent her life growing up with, Anna felt overwhelmed by emotion. She couldn’t imagine leaving her so-called father and brother, but glancing back towards the red dragon, she was so curious about the life she had missed out on. These people needed her, she could be their symbol of hope.

Kneeling down next to Nagare, she took his palm. “I want to thank you both,” she whispered. “For giving me a wonderful life here in the palace and for protecting me…” she said softly. “I do love you both and Nagare, though your intentions are selfish, I know you’ve always meant well and are a good person at heart,” she whispered. Nagare stared at their hands, glancing down as she connected their fingers. 

“Anna…” he sighed. 

“It’s okay. I want to experience this life. This life I don’t know. I want to learn more about dragons and what it means to be one. They need me there. It’s where I belong. But I know you will be here and I will come back to you. Perhaps we could train together so I can understand this bond,” she said with a smile. 

Sighing, Nagare placed a hand on top of her head and stroked her hair. “I don’t know where you learned to be so righteous,” he sighed. 

With a small chuckle, Anna shrugged. “I don’t agree with what you both did but I cannot deny my feelings for you both,” she said softly. “I can’t abandon my family I’ve known forever, but for now…” She stood up and turned to face Suoh. “I’d like to come back with you, at least for a little bit, if that’s alright,” she smiled. Suoh nodded immediately, a small smirk appearing on his lips. 

“Of course you can,” Kusanagi chuckled. “S’why we’re here after all, for you.” 

While they spoke, Munakata felt his breathing growing shallow and slowly, he sank to the ground, slipping down the wall. “Munakata!” Suoh gasped and ran to his side. “What the hell? Are you okay?” he asked. 

“I’m quite tired. I felt you have quite the fight,” he whispered, looking concerned at the large wound on his neck. Thankfully it had stopped bleeding, but the gash ran deep under his skin.

“You felt?” Suoh asked and Munakata nodded. 

“We’re bonded. I could feel everything,” he said softly. Suoh’s eyes widened, flashes of the many wounds he received running through his mind.

“Shit,” he grunted. “How have you been standing this long?” he asked. 

“How have you?” he retorted with a smirk. 

Sighing, Suoh wrapped his arms around Munakata’s waist and pressed their lips together, kissing him gently. “Because we did it. Thanks to you, Anna is going to come back with us.”

“You probably had something to do with it too, but yes. I recognize that without my genius plan the girl never would’ve come with us,” he chuckled. 

“Don’t get cocky,” Suoh said, picking him up. “Should I carry my real princess?” he asked, a teasing smirk on his lips. 

“I am not a princess!” Though his body was so exhausted, he didn’t fight Suoh carrying him.

“Oh really? I seem to recall taking you from this very spot the first time we met. And you _were_ in a dress.” 

Munakata was silent for a moment as he stared into Suoh’s amber eyes. With a sigh, he pressed his lips against Suoh’s once more. “Touché.” 

Glancing around, a smirk appeared on Suoh’s face. “Well, I could use a good sleep. Who’s ready to go home?” He glanced towards Anna, her hopeful red eyes sparkling happily.

“I certainly am,” Munakata grinned, tucking his head under Suoh’s. 

~ A few months later ~

“Reisi.” The mage groaned and turned over in the comfortable bed, not wanting to move. How could he move? His head was pressed against the plush white pillow, wisps of his blue hair spread messily across it. Even with the sun gleaming in through the window, he had no desire to get up. “Reisi.” The gruff voice moved into his ears once more and with a sigh, his purple eyes fluttered open. Above him hovered the red-haired shifter he’d been spending the past few months with. He should’ve been used to the man’s visage in his line of view in such a way, still, his heart throbbed gently in his chest whenever they were so close.

“Maybe I wouldn’t have such a difficult time waking up in the morning if _someone_ didn’t keep me up so late at night all the time,” he hummed, wrapping his arms around his neck, pressing his lips to the man’s. 

“Well that’s your fault for being so damn pretty,” he chuckled, nuzzling his nose against the mage. “Now get up,” he muttered. 

“Ah!” Munakata’s eyes widened as he shot up, fumbling to put his glasses on his face. “We’re supposed to leave today with Kusanagi and Awashima!” he exclaimed. Narrowing his eyes, he grunted and tried to smooth down his messy hair. “I swear, you always do these things the night before we’re supposed to leave for a new job. We’re a new guild faction and if we’re late, you’re going to make the Dragon Knights look terrible before we even get any sort of positive reputation, Mikoto. Anna is going to be disappointed in you if you ruin it before it even begins,” he scoffed.

Pressing his lips to the mage’s, Suoh grinned. “Reisi. Shut up. We’re gonna be fine. Stop overthinking things. We have an eternity to build our reputation.” Pushing off of the bed, he made his way to the door frame, grinning as he stepped out. 

“Yes,” Munakata hummed, watching Suoh leave the room. “An eternity,” he smiled, knowing he’d never been happier.

**Author's Note:**

> If you actually made it to the end of this freaking monster fic, I really thank you for taking the time to read this. This fic really just...brought my creativity to life and it also ran away from me a little bit, as you can see. I've been having a rough time this year and this was such a passion project that I loved doing. This is the longest fic I've ever written and I really just kind of dove into it for almost 3 weeks. I made a joke to Tess that if I ended up writing this prompt it would turn into a novel and I was originally kidding and yet here I am weeks later with practically 44K. 
> 
> So once again, thank you Shinyphoenix for the prompt (Let's be friends okay?! this was such a great idea?!) I want to SUPER DUPER thank Gretchen and Aka, for reading and being my amazing betas through this and giving me INCREDIBLE notes. I owe you both so much and I don't feel that this small thank you is enough. Super thank you Claire for also reading through and giving me feedback and laughing at the parts I hoped people would laugh at! It was so helpful having you enjoy it as I wrote it! Thank you to Tess for dealing with me and for running this event <3!!!. And thank you to my love Sara for listening to me moan and groan about how much I hate myself while writing this.
> 
> I love MikoRei and I really loved writing this and I really loved how they fit in this world. I definitely would like to continue with the other characters and other stories in this world.
> 
> Thank you to everyone who read this and liked it!! Seriously it means so much to me!!! <33 Talk to me on Twitter [musickazoo](https://twitter.com/musickazoo) or Tumblr [emeraldwaves](http://emeraldwaves.tumblr.com/) to chat if you want!!! I always wanna talk K project <3


End file.
